of each buttress, but our
boatmen knew well what they were about, as they are in the habit of
taking Mr. Hodges daily to the bridge and it was very pretty to hear the
warning of _doucement! doucement!_ from the helmsman as we approached
any peril. Mr. H. said that without the familiarity they had with the
river, the boat would in an instant be carried down the stream and out
of all control. The French language is much more spoken than the
English, there being a large body of French Roman Catholic Canadians
here and at Quebec. I say this to account for the _doucement_; but must
now leave this wonderful bridge, and tell you that after seeing it we
drove to the Bishop of Montreal's. We found him and Mrs. Fulford at
home, and sat some time with them, and they asked us to drink tea with
them, which we did. There was no one there but ourselves, and we passed
an agreeable evening with them, and came home by moonlight with the
comet also beaming on us.

_September 27th._--We went yesterday morning to a small church in the
suburbs where the bishop preached. We found Lord and Lady Radstock in
the hotel, and papa walked with him in the afternoon, and endeavoured to
learn something of the Christian Young Men's Association here. They
found the secretary at home, and from him learnt that the revivals of
religion here have lately been of a satisfactory nature, and that there
is a great deal of religious feeling at work among the middle classes. I
forgot to mention that on Saturday we met a long procession of nuns
going to the church of Notre Dame, which gave the place a very foreign
look. We went into the church for a few minutes. It was very large, part
of it was well filled, and a French sermon going on. There are a good
many convents here, and I shall try to visit one. The Jesuits are said
to be very busy. We hear French constantly spoken in the streets. We
went to church again yesterday evening, when the bishop preached on the
text, "Demas hath forsaken me."

To-day we took Lord and Lady Radstock to Mr. Hodges, who promised to
show them over the bridge, and since that papa and I have had a pleasant
drive round the mountain. From one part we had a good view of the Ottawa
river, celebrated by Moore, who wrote his Canadian boat song in a canoe
on the rapids of that river. The town of Ottawa has been named by the
Queen as the seat of Government; but after consulting her on the
subject, the inhabitants seem disinclined to take her adv