December, 1791, when at St. Paul's Bay,
in the Saguenay country, he saw the flames of an immense volcano,
mingled with black smoke, rising to a great height in the air. Several
violent shocks, as of an earthquake, accompanied this strange
appearance.

The prevailing winds of Lower Canada are the northeast, northwest, and
southwest, and these exercise considerable influence on the temperature
of the atmosphere and the state of the weather. The southwest wind, the
most prevalent, is generally moderate, accompanied by clear, bright
skies; the northeast and east wind bring rain in summer, and snow in
winter, from the dreary regions of Labrador; and the northwest blast is
keen and dry, from its passage over the vast frozen solitudes that lie
between the Rocky Mountains[161] and Hudson's Bay. Winds from the north,
south, or west are seldom felt: the currents of the neighboring air are
often affected by the direction of the tidal streams, which act as far
as 400 miles from the mouth of the Great River.

The effect of a long continuance of snow upon the earth is favorable to
vegetation; were the surface exposed to the intense severity of wintery
frosts, unprotected by this ample covering, the ground could not regain
a proper degree of heat, even under a Canadian sun, before the autumn
frosts had again chilled the energies of nature. The natural heat of the
earth is about 42 deg.; the surface waters freeze at 32 deg., and thus present a
non-conducting incrustation to the keen atmosphere; then the snow
becomes a warm garment till the April sun softens the air above; the
latent heat of the earth begins to be developed; the snow melts, and
penetrates the ground through every pore, rendering friable the stiffest
soil. For a month or more before the visible termination of the
Canadian winter, vegetation is in active progress on the surface of the
earth, even under snow several feet thick.

In Upper Canada the climate does not present such extremes of heat and
cold as in the Lower Province. In the Newcastle District, between
latitude 44 deg. and 45 deg., the winter is little more severe than in England,
and the warmth of summer is tempered by a cool and refreshing southwest
breeze, which blows throughout the day from over the waters of the great
lakes. In spring and autumn the southwest wind brings with it frequent
rains; the northwest wind prevails in winter, and is dry, cold, and
elastic; the south-eastern breezes are generally ac