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lights in America that we have in Italy: we have there the beautiful sky, the fine landscape; we have there Vesuvius, that sends its fire to the heavens!' The true Yankee boy stood it long enough; his pride came up: he turned round to the Italian, before he had time to let his hands fall from their gestures of admiration for his country, and, with a tone of impatience, replied, '—— your Vesuvius! we've got a Niagara will put her out in five minutes!"-American Paper.

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The other is the remark of a New York schneider, one of a party to "The Falls:"

"The tailor made a single note

Gods! what a place to sponge a coat."

After remaining two days at "The Falls," we proceeded on foot to Fort Erie, through a rich, cultivated country. As we passed along, we killed a variety of snakes, of different sorts, that we found basking in the sun. We did not, however, find any rattlesnakes, although our faithful guide, Nekig, brought us the skin of one, which he had procured from a wayfaring Indian; it was between three and four feet in length. "The little Otter" proposed to us a "potage de serpent à sonnettes," declaring that the flesh was as white as the most delicate fish, and that soup made from it was highly delicious and nourishing. We, however, declined the tempting offer. On reaching Fort Erie, we found excellent accommodation in the house of a British settler's widow.

The following morning we amused ourselves in rambling through the woods, and along the shores of the lake, with our fowling-pieces. On the strand we found

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selves, and experiencing the truth of old Isaak Walton's

lines:

"Oh! the gallant fisher's life,

It is the best of any;

'Tis full of pleasure, void of strife,
And 'tis beloved by many."

After remaining two days in our encampment, we proceeded to the Falls; and here our expectations were raised to the highest pitch. He must, indeed, be a cold observer, who can see this wonder of the creation without sensations more than ordinarily solemn and intense. But, as the inimitable George Robins would write :

"In describing this wonder of the world, we will avoid that inflated and fustian style, made up of hackneyed phrases and stale quotations, and carefully eschew poetry, as that species of composition is usually fiction, and simply say that no power of words can convey an adequate idea of its sublimity. Suffice it to mention the irresistible force, the rapidity of motion displayed by the ROLLING CLOUDS OF FOAM ;—the uncommon brilliancy and variety of colours and shades;-the ceaseless intumescence, and swift agitation of the DASHING WAVES BELOW ;-the solemn and tremendous noise, with columns of vapour darting upwards into the air, which the simultaneous report and smoke of a THOUSAND CANNON could scarcely equal, irresistibly tend to impress the imagination with such a train of SUBLIME SenSATIONS as few other combinations of natural objects are capable of producing."

To this brief account we will merely add two American notions from the United States press.-"Nationality.—An Italian travelling in this country, remarked, with much enthusiasm, in his foreign accent, Sar, you have no de

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lights in America that we have in Italy: we have there the beautiful sky, the fine landscape; we have there Vesuvius, that sends its fire to the heavens!' The true Yankee boy stood it long enough; his pride came up: he turned round to the Italian, before he had time to let his hands fall from their gestures of admiration for his country, and, with a tone of impatience, replied, — your Vesuvius! we've got a Niagara will put her out in five minutes!"-American Paper.

The other is the remark of a New York schneider, one of a party to "The Falls:"

"The tailor made a single note

Gods! what a place to sponge a coat."

After remaining two days at "The Falls," we proceeded on foot to Fort Erie, through a rich, cultivated country. As we passed along, we killed a variety of snakes, of different sorts, that we found basking in the sun. We did not, however, find any rattlesnakes, although our faithful guide, Nekig, brought us the skin of one, which he had procured from a wayfaring Indian; it was between three and four feet in length. "The little Otter" proposed to us a "potage de serpent à sonnettes," declaring that the flesh was as white as the most delicate fish, and that soup made from it was highly delicious and nourishing. We, however, declined the tempting offer. On reaching Fort Erie, we found excellent accommodation in the house of a British settler's widow.

The following morning we amused ourselves in rambling through the woods, and along the shores of the lake, with our fowling-pieces. On the strand we found

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great numbers of gulls, and different birds of prey, such as hawks and kites; we also met with large flocks of sand larks, as they are called by the people of the country, in colour somewhat resembling the grey lapwing. In the woods, we fell in, for the first time, with a large covey, or flock, of spruce partridges, or pheasants, as the people call them in the neighbourhood. Nothing could exceed their tameness; as they perched on the trees, we shot a brace and a half before the flock took to flight. To palliate this unsportsman-like conduct, I must explain that the woods were so thick we could scarcely hope to get a flying shot, and were most anxious to bag a specimen of the bird. We now traversed Lake Erie and Lake Huron. Here we engaged a party of Indians to accompany us elk-hunting.

In Canada, and all the northern parts of America, the elk, under the name of the orignal, and the reindeer, under that of caribou, are met with. Our guide explained to us the numerous ways of hunting them, and entered into some peculiarities connected with these animals. In winter, the Indians follow them, shod in their snow shoes, by means of which they walk without sinking, and easily overtake the orignal, which, from sinking in the snow, is unable to make much way. At other times they are chased into snares. An alley of stakes, wattled together, is constructed, into which they are driven ; a large ditch, on the principle of the one made by the farfamed Jack the Giant Killer, being ready at the end to receive them. They are also shot with muskets and rifles.

A singularity, which is common to the elk, must not
When the animal runs, though not at full

be omitted.

speed, the joints of his limbs make a great noise, like flints falling on each other, or like the breaking of nuts. The quincajou, advertised by this noise, waits the approach of the elk, darts down upon its back, fixing his claws in its throat, and then tears the creature's neck, a little below the ears, till it falls down. It is remarkable, that this animal, which is not larger than a badger, should kill the elk, which exceeds the size of a horse, and is so strong as to slay a man or wolf with a single stroke of his foot. But the fact is attested by so many authorities, as to render it altogether unquestionable. Now to our chasse.

Placing the guns at the extremity of a narrow strip of wood, we left the Indians to beat our game up to us. In a few moments, the yelling, hallooing, and shouting of the tribe, put some elks on foot: just as I was on the point of firing at one that came within shot, the animal suddenly dropped down. My first impression was, that he had been stunned by some missile, but my guide explained that it was the falling sickness, to which these animals are subject. While under the influence of this disease, Nekig approached him, and dispatched him with his scalpingknife. In the course of the day, we fell in with no less than a herd of orignals, and, between us, brought down four of them. The flesh is peculiarly tender and delicate, and the tongue is much esteemed. To wind up our day's sport we gave a grand supper to our Huron guides; "the little Otter" acting as croupier on the occasion; and certainly neither he, nor any of his fraternity, seemed as much addicted to water as his name would give one to suppose. It was midnight before we drank the Doch andorrach, or parting-cup..

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