Letter XXVIII

"Having remained in Quebec and the neighbourhood as long as we could, consistently with the plan which we had formed of visiting the Falls of Niagara, and returning again into the States before the commencement of winter, we set out for Montreal by land.

In no part of North America can a traveller proceed so commodiosly as alng this road between Quebec and Montreal; a regular line of post houses, at convenient distances of each other, being establhsed upon it, where calashes or carioles, according to the season are always kep in readiness.  Each postmaster is obliged to have four calashes, and the same number of cariolesl. and besides these, as many more are generally kep at each stage by persons called aides-de-poste, for which the post-master calls when his own happen to be engaged.  The post-master has the excluisvie privitlege of furnishing these carriages at every stage, and, under a penalty, he must have them ready in a quarter of an hour after they are demanded by a traveller, it it be day-light, and in half an hour should it be in the night.  The drivers are bound to take you on at the rate of two leadgues an hour.  The charge for a calash with a single horse is one shilling Halifax * currency per league; no gratuity is expected by the driver.

The post calashes are very clumsily built, but upon the whole we found them easy and agreeable carriages; they are certainly far superior to the American stage waggons, ...."  Volume II, p2-3.

* According to Halifax currency, whis is the established currency of Lower Canada, the dollar passes for 5 shillings.  The silver coins current in Canada are dollars, haves, quarters, eithths, and sixteenths of dollars, pistareeens, Spanish coins somewhat less valuable than quarter dollars, and French and English crowns and half crowns.  Gold coins pass only as bullion by weight.  British and Portugal gold coins are deemed the best next to them those of Spain, the those of France!