territory; but, alas! the silk hat has given it its death-blow. The most profitable fur in the country is that of the marten. It somewhat resembles the Russian sable, and generally maintains a steady price. These animals, moreover, are very numerous, particularly in the region of Mackenzie River, whence great numbers are annually sent to England.

Trade is carried on with the natives by means of a standard valuation, called in some parts of the country a castor. This is to obviate the necessity of circulating money, of which there is little or none, excepting in the colony of Red River. Probably a trader tells an Indian, after looking over his furs, that he has got fifty or sixty castors; at the same time he hands to him fifty or sixty little bits of wood in lieu of cash, so that the latter may know, by returning these in payment of the goods for which he really exchanges his skins, how fast his funds decrease. Having selected the blankets, knives, and other articles which he wishes to purchase, to the extent that his wooden money will admit of, he packs up his goods, and departs to show his treasures to his wife. The value of a castor is from one to two shillings. The natives generally visit the trading establishments twice a year-once in October, when they bring in the produce of their autumn hunts; and again in March, when they come in with that of the great winter hunt.

The number of castors that an Indian makes in a winter hunt varies from fifty to two hundred, according to his perseverance and activity, and the part of the country in which he hunts. The largest amount

I ever heard of made by one man, was two hundred and sixty castors. The poor fellow was soon afterwards poisoned by his relatives, who were jealous of his superior abilities as a hunter, and envious of the favour shown him by the white men.

After the furs are collected in spring at all the different outposts, they are packed in convenientlysized bales, and forwarded, by means of boats and canoes, to the depôts on the sea-coast, whence they are transported to England. The whole country in summer is, consequently, in commotion with the passing and repassing of brigades of boats laden with bales of merchandise and furs; the still waters of the lakes and rivers are rippled by the paddle and the oar; and the long silent echoes, which have slumbered in the icy embrace of a dreary winter, are now once more awakened by the merry voice and tuneful song of the hardy voyageur."

QUESTIONS. From whom is Hudson Bay named? How did Hudson first distinguish himself? In what year did he set out on his last voyage? What places did he touch at on his way to America? What did he suppose Hudson Bay to be? From what did his crew suffer during the winter? What did they do on the homeward voyage? Why were not the survivors brought to trial? When was the Hudson Bay Company established? Where was their first fort built? How many stations would be built in an area equal to Great Britain? In what articles did the Company trade? Which is the most valuable fur? Which used to be the staple? Why has it gone down? Which is the most profitable fur? What is a castor? How many castors does an Indian usually make in a winter hunt?

THE FOUR ERAS.1

THE lark has sung his carol in the sky;

The bees have hummed their noontide harmony;
Still in the vale the village bells ring round,

Still in Llewellyn Hall the jests resound:
For now the caudle-cup2 is circling there;
Now, glad at heart, the gossips3 breathe their prayer,
And, crowding, stop the cradle to admire

The babe, the sleeping image of his sire.

A few short years, and then these sounds shall hail
The day again, and gladness fill the vale;
So soon the child a youth, the youth a man,
Eager to run the race his fathers ran.

Then the huge ox shall yield the broad sirloin ;
The ale, new-brewed, in floods of amber shine;
And, basking in the chimney's ample blaze,
'Mid many a tale told of his boyish days,
The nurse shall cry, of all her ills beguiled,
""Twas on these knees he sate so soft, and smiled."
And soon again shall music swell the breeze;
Soon, issuing forth, shall glitter through the trees
Vestures of nuptial white; and hymns be sung,
And violets scattered round; and old and young,
In every cottage porch, with garlands green,
Stand still to gaze, and, gazing, bless the scene;
While, her dark eyes declining, by his side
Moves in her virgin-veil the gentle bride.

And once, alas! nor in a distant hour,
Another voice shall come from yonder tower;
When in dim chambers long black weeds are seen,
And weepings heard where only joy has been ;
When by his children borne, and from his door
Slowly departing, to return no more,

He rests in holy earth with them that went before.
SAMUEL ROGERS.

1 The Four Eras are, Birth, Coming | relative,-god-father or -mother. [Old

of Age, Marriage, and Death.

2 Cau'dle-cup, a warm drink, made of wine and other ingredients.

'Gossips, idle talkers; lit. a god

Eng. god-sib, god-relative.]

Samuel Rogers, poet; born in 1763; became a wealthy banker; author of The Pleasures of Memory; died in 1855.

THE SKATER AND THE WOLVES.

[THE following remarkable account of an escape from wolves in America, during the winter of 1844, is related by Mr. Whitehead.]

I HAD left my friend's house one evening just before dusk, with the intention of skating a short distance up the noble river which glided directly before the door. The night was beautifully clear. A peerless moon rode through an occasional fleecy cloud, and stars twinkled from the sky and from every frost-covered tree in millions. Light also came glinting from ice, and snow-wreath, and encrusted branches, as the eye followed for miles the broad gleam of the river, that like a jewelled zone swept between the mighty forests on its banks. And The cold seemed to have frozen tree, and air, and water, and every living thing. Even the ringing of my skates echoed back from the hill with a startling clearness; and the crackle of the ice, as I passed over it in my course, seemed to follow the tide of the river with lightning speed.

yet all was still.

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1

I had gone up the river nearly two miles, when, coming to a little stream which empties into the larger, I turned into it to explore its course. Fir and hemlock of a century's growth met overhead, and formed an archway radiant with frost-work. All was dark within; but I was young and fearless, and as I peered into an unbroken forest that reared itself on the borders of the stream, I laughed with very joyousness.

My wild hurrah rung through the silent woods, and I stood listening to the echo that reverberated ❜

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Suddenly a

again and again, until all was hushed. sound arose- -it seemed to me to come from beneath the ice; it was low and tremulous at first, but it ended in one long wild yell. I was appalled. Never before had such a noise met my ears. Presently I heard the brushwood on shore crash, as though from the tread of some animal. The blood rushed to my forehead-my energies returned, and I looked around me for some means of escape.

The moon shone through the opening at the mouth of the creek by which I had entered the forest, and, considering this the best means of escape, I darted toward it like an arrow. It was hardly a hundred yards distant, and the swallow could scarcely have excelled me in flight; yet, as I turned my head to the shore, I could see several dark objects dashing through the brushwood at a pace nearly double in speed to my own. By their great speed, and the short yells which they occasionally gave, I knew at once that these were the much dreaded gray wolves.

The bushes that skirted the shore flew past with the velocity of lightning as I dashed on in my flight to pass the narrow opening. The outlet was nearly gained a few seconds more and I would be comparatively safe; but in a moment my pursuers appeared on the bank above me, which here rose to the height of ten feet. There was no time for thought I bent my head and dashed madly forward. The wolves sprang, but, miscalculating my speed, fell behind, while their intended prey glided out upon the river!

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