seigneur, of this son's life at
Gibraltar at the time when Trafalgar was fought, of his return to
Canada, of campaigns in the war of 1812. Then there were touching
letters from others to tell how he fell at the battle of Crysler's Farm.
So intimate were the letters that one experienced again the hopes and
fears of more than a century ago. In time, out of the dimness in which
all had been shrouded, Murray Bay's history became clear. Of course one
had to seek some information elsewhere, especially in attempting an
analysis of French Canadian village life. But the story told in this
volume is based chiefly on the papers read during that holiday. Not only
did they enable one to reconstruct the story of a spot made almost
sacred by the joys of many a delightful summer; they furnished, besides,
an outline of the tragic history of a Canadian family. Here at Murray
Bay, a century and a half ago, a brave and distinguished British officer
secured a great estate and made his home. In his letters we read almost
from day to day of his plans. He had a strong heart and a deep faith. He
reared a large family and built not merely for himself but for his
posterity. And yet, just one hundred years after he began his work at
Murray Bay, the last of his descendants was laid in the grave and the
family became extinct. It is the fashion of our modern fiction to end
the tale in sorrow not in joy. Perhaps the fashion has a more real basis
in fact than we like to think. At any rate this true story of the
seigneur of Murray Bay ends with the closed record of his family history
on a granite monument in Quebec. There is no one living for whom the
tale has the special interest that attaches to one's ancestors.

I have received help from many but my deepest obligation is to Mr. E.J.
Duggan, the present seigneur of Murray Bay, for his great kindness in
permitting me to use the letters and papers in the Manor House. I owe
much to the Right Honourable Sir Charles Fitzpatrick, who has taught me,
in many holiday outings, most of what appreciation I have learned for
French Canadian village life, and has corrected errors into which I
should otherwise have fallen. So also have Mr. W.H. Blake, K.C., of
Toronto, a good authority on all that concerns life at Murray Bay, and
M. J.-Edmond Roy, Assistant Archivist at Ottawa, whose "Histoire de la
Seigneurie de Lauzon" and many other works relating to the Province of
Quebec entitle him to the rank of its foremost hi