hunting, in which he was to be a principal leader. I accepted the invitation joyfully, and Mr. Franklin, though averse from all scenes of destruction, as he calls sporting, willingly united in the proposal, from curiosity,

We

Early in the morning, we were roused to the chace; a numerous company of Indians being assembled, attended by large dogs, of a breed between, the blood-houud and the mastiff. entered the woods together, and after walking some miles, my new acquaintance first perceived the track of a bear, amongst the scattered leaves; a discovery in which he was a great adept, being able to tell, with a glance of his eye, how many of these animals had passed that way, and whether they were cubs or old ones. The hunters immediately formed a circle, and advanced further into the forest; pursuing the scent, as they were directed by the dogs, till they roused the bear, which proved to be a female, followed by two cubs. The best marksman immediately took aim, and lodged several balls in her body. Full of rage at this assault, and alarmed for the safety of her young, she turned fiercely upon her enemies, whilst the cubs instantly ascended a tree. The dogs, with open mouths, kept her at bay till she fell, overpowered by repeated wounds, and the cubs afterwards became the prey of the hunters. The Indians had furnished themselves with knives and tomahawks; with the first they presently stripped off the skins,

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and with the last, cut up the carcases; the parts of preference, such as the paws and haunches, they carried home, and the remainder was left in the wood. The haunch of one of the cubs was dressed for dinner, and proved extremely good.

In some of our forest excursions we saw coveys of birds, larger, but otherwise much resembling the English partridge, called by the country people, spruce pheasants. These birds are delicate food, the flesh being flavoured very much like our pheasants; and they are so stupidly tame, that it requires but little art to shoot them in numbers: especially if the sportsman begins his attack on the bird that sits lowest on the tree, and so proceeds as they ascend; the survivors seeming insensible to the fate of their companions.

In order to pursue our journey, we proceeded to Fort Chippeway: it stands on a creek near the shore of the Niagara river. The fort consists of a small · block-house, enclosed by a stockade of cedar-posts, which is merely sufficient to defend the garrison against musket shot. A few farm-houses, and some large stone repositories for goods, form the rest of the village. Block-houses are so commonly used. here as fortifications, and so different from any thing in England, I must describe one to you. Theirwalls are formed of thick, square pieces of timber; the upper story projects above the lower, and loopholes are left round the edge of the floor; so that if an attempt were made to storm the house, the

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garrison could fire directly on the assailants. But should their resistance be overpowered, and half the building be shot away, the other half would stand as firm as before, each piece of timber in the roof and walls being so fixed, as to be independent of the rest. So that if a piece of artillery were played upon the block-house, that part alone, against which the ball struck, would be displaced, and every other remain uninjured. From Fort Chippeway we followed the course of the river to Fort Erie. In the latter part of our ride we observed that the land is rich, and well cultivated with Indian corn, gourds, and squashes; melons are also planted between the rows, and attain great perfection. Our inn at Fort Erie is a wretched log-house, with scarcely a whole pane of glass in any of the windows. Unfortunately fer us a heavy rain fell last night, that beat in upon us, as we lay asleep on the floor, folded in our buffalo skins; but our greatest hardship is want of food, and the little we get is so bad, that nothing but hunger can make it go down. We wait only for a fair wind to set sail across Lake Erie; and I am so tired of our quarters, I do little but watch the weather-cock. Present my affectionate duty to my mother, and think often of your absent

ARTHUR MIDDLETON.

LETTER

LETTER XXXVIII,

Mr. Franklin to Edwin Middleton.

MY DEAR YOUNG FRIEND,

District of Malden.

FROM the account your brother gave of our accommodations at Fort Erie, you may believe we willingly obeyed the summons of our captain to embark. We had not been two hours on board before the signal gun was fired, and the vessel scudded before the wind. Evening approached. The vast body of water, bounded only by the horizon, glowed with the rich tints reflected from the western sky. The tall trees of the forest, that adorned the shore, seemed tipt with gold, by the last beams of the setting sun. All was hushed and tranquil, as if nature were at rest. The moment was favourable to reflection. My mind wandered across the Atlantic with satisfaction, in the consideration that the same Power under whose protection I had been preserved in safety through so many changes of climate, watched over my friends at home. I sunk to sleep under a strong impression of the goodness of the Universal Father. In the morning, the face of nature presented images of

his power. The surface of the water, which before was smooth and clear, became agitated with swelling waves, that tossed the vessel about furiously. The wind blew a hurricane, and the sky was obscured with black clouds, that reflected their sombre huc on the bosom of the lake. Several hours our frail bark had to contend with this war of elements. The scene was awful, and excited the most reverent ideas of the majesty and omnipotence of the Author of Nature. The wind subsided towards the close of day, and the appearance of the lake resumed its former harmony. During the rest of the voyage, a moderate gale filled the sails, and we advanced as fast as we could desire. We were several days on the passage, the lake being nearly three hundred miles from the western to the eastern extremity; and so deep, that, in calm weather, vessels may securely ride at anchor in any part of it; but when stormy, the anchorage in the open part is not to be trusted. because the sands at bottom are loose, and give way. The height of the land is very variable. In some places, long ranges of steep mountains rise from the very edge of the water; in others, the shores are so flat, that when a strong wind drives the water towards the land, the country is inun dated for miles. As we approached the western side of the lake, we observed several clusters of islands, which present very pleasing scenery, being all adorned with wood, even to the very

smallest;