Roughing It in the Bush Part 52

THE BURNING OF THE CAROLINE

A sound is on the midnight deep-- The voice of waters vast; And onward, with resistless sweep, The torrent rushes past, In frantic chase, wave after wave, The crowding surges press, and rave Their mingled might to cast Adown Niagara's giant steep; The fretted billows foaming leap With wild tumultuous roar; The clashing din ascends on high, In deaf'ning thunders to the sky, And shakes the rocky sh.o.r.e.

Hark! what strange sounds arise-- 'Tis not stern Nature's voice-- In mingled chorus to the skies!

The waters in their depths rejoice.

Hark! on the midnight air A frantic cry uprose; The yell of fierce despair, The shout of mortal foes; And mark yon sudden glare, Whose red, portentous gleam Flashes on rock and stream With strange, unearthly light; What pa.s.sing meteor's beam Lays bare the brow of night?

From yonder murky sh.o.r.e What demon vessel glides, Stemming the unstemm'd tides, Where maddening breakers roar In hostile surges round her path, Or hiss, recoiling from her prow, That reeling, staggers to their wrath; While distant sh.o.r.es return the glow That brightens from her burning frame, And all above--around--below-- Is wrapt in ruddy flame?

Sail on!--sail on!--No mortal hand Directs that vessel's blazing course; The vengeance of an injured land Impels her with resistless force 'Midst breaking wave and fiery gleam, O'er-canopied with clouds of smoke; Midway she stems the raging stream, And feels the rapids' thundering stroke; Now buried deep, now whirl'd on high, She struggles with her awful doom,-- With frantic speed now hurries by To find a watery tomb.

Lo, poised upon the topmost surge, She shudders o'er the dark abyss; The foaming waters round her hiss And hoa.r.s.e waves ring her funeral dirge; The chafing billows round her close; But ere her burning planks are riven, Shoots up one ruddy spout of fire,-- Her last farewell to earth and heaven.

Down, down to endless night she goes!

So may the traitor's hope expire, So perish all our country's foes!

Destruction's blazing star Has vanish'd from our sight; The thunderbolt of war Is quench'd in endless night; Nor sight, nor sound of fear Startles the listening ear; Naught but the torrent's roar, The dull, deep, heavy sound, From out the dark profound, Echoes from sh.o.r.e to sh.o.r.e.

Where late the cry of blood Rang on the midnight air, The mournful lapsing of the flood, The wild winds in the lonely wood, Claim sole dominion there.

To thee, high-hearted Drew!

And thy victorious band Of heroes tried and true A nation's thanks are due.

Defender of an injured land!

Well hast thou taught the dastard foe That British honour never yields To democratic influence, low, The glory of a thousand fields.

Justice to traitors, long delay'd, This night was boldly dealt by thee; The debt of vengeance thou hast paid, And may the deed immortal be.

Thy outraged country shall bestow A lasting monument of fame, The highest meed of praise below-- A British patriot's deathless name!

CHAPTER XXIV

THE WHIRLWIND

[For the poem that heads this chapter, I am indebted to my brother, Mr. Strickland, of Douro, C.W.]

Dark, heavy clouds were gathering in the west, Wrapping the forest in funereal gloom; Onward they roll'd, and rear'd each livid crest, Like Death's murk shadows frowning o'er earth's tomb.

From out the inky womb of that deep night Burst livid flashes of electric flame.

Whirling and circling with terrific might, In wild confusion on the tempest came.

Nature, awakening from her still repose, Shudders responsive to the whirlwind's shock, Feels at her might heart convulsive throes, And all her groaning forests to earth's bosom rock.

But hark!--What means that hollow, rushing sound, That breaks the death-like stillness of the morn?

Red forked lightnings fiercely glare around, Sharp, crashing thunders on the winds are borne, And see yon spiral column, black as night, Rearing triumphantly its wreathing form; Ruin's abroad, and through the murky light-- Drear desolation marks the spirit of the storm.

S.S.

The 19th of August came, and our little harvest was all safely housed. Business called Moodie away for a few days to Cobourg.

Jenny had gone to Dummer, to visit her friends, and J. E--- had taken a grist of the new wheat, which he and Moodie had threshed the day before, to the mill. I was consequently left alone with the children, and had a double portion of work to do. During their absence it was my lot to witness the most awful storm I ever beheld, and a vivid recollection of its terrors was permanently fixed upon my memory.

The weather had been intensely hot during the three preceding days, although the sun was entirely obscured by a blueish haze, which seemed to render the unusual heat of the atmosphere more oppressive.

Not a breath of air stirred the vast forest, and the waters of the lake a.s.sumed a leaden hue. After pa.s.sing a sleepless night, I arose, a little after day-break, to superintend my domestic affairs. E--- took his breakfast, and went off to the mill, hoping that the rain would keep off until after his return.

"It is no joke," he said, "being upon these lakes in a small canoe, heavily laden, in a storm."

Before the sun rose, the heavens were covered with hard-looking clouds, of a deep blue and black cast, fading away to white at their edges, and in the form resembling the long, rolling waves of a heavy sea--but with this difference, that the clouds were perfectly motionless, piled in long curved lines, one above the other, and so remained until four o'clock in the afternoon. The appearance of these clouds, as the sun rose above the horizon, was the most splendid that can be imagined, tinged up to the zenith with every shade of saffron, gold, rose-colour, scarlet, and crimson, fading away into the deepest violet. Never did the storm-fiend shake in the face of a day a more gorgeous banner; and, pressed as I was for time, I stood gazing like one entranced upon the magnificent pageant.

As the day advanced, the same blue haze obscured the sun, which frowned redly through his misty veil. At ten o'clock the heat was suffocating, and I extinguished the fire in the cooking-stove, determined to make our meals upon bread and milk, rather than add to the oppressive heat. The thermometer in the shade ranged from ninety-six to ninety-eight degrees, and I gave over my work and retired with the ones to the coolest part of the house. The young creatures stretched themselves upon the floor, unable to jump about or play; the dog lay panting in the shade; the fowls half-buried themselves in the dust, with open beaks and outstretched wings; all nature seemed to droop beneath the scorching heat.

Unfortunately for me, a gentlemen arrived about one o'clock from Kingston, to transact some business with my husband. He had not tasted food since six o'clock, and I was obliged to kindle the fire to prepare his dinner. It was one of the hardest tasks I ever performed; I almost fainted with the heat, and most inhospitably rejoiced when his dinner was over, and I saw him depart. Shortly after, my friend Mrs. C--- and her brother called in, on their way from Peterborough.

"How do you bear the heat?" asked Mrs. C---. "This is one of the hottest days I ever remember to have experienced in this part of the province. I am afraid that it will end in a hurricane, or what the Lower Canadians term 'l'orage.'"

About four o'clock they rose to go. I urged them to stay longer.

"No," said Mrs. C---, "the sooner we get home the better. I think we can reach it before the storm breaks."

I took Donald in my arms, and my eldest boy by the hand, and walked with them to the brow of the hill, thinking that the air would be cooler in the shade. In this I was mistaken. The clouds over our heads hung so low, and the heat was so great, that I was soon glad to retrace my steps.

The moment I turned round to face the lake, I was surprised at the change that had taken place in the appearance of the heavens. The clouds, that had before lain so motionless, were now in rapid motion, hurrying and chasing each other round the horizon. It was a strangely awful sight. Before I felt a breath of the mighty blast that had already burst on the other side of the lake, branches of trees, leaves, and clouds of dust were whirled across the lake, whose waters rose in long sharp furrows, fringed with foam, as if moved in their depths by some unseen but powerful agent.

Panting with terror, I just reached the door of the house as the hurricane swept up the hill, crushing and overturning everything in its course. Spell-bound, I stood at the open door, with clasped hands, unable to speak, rendered dumb and motionless by the terrible grandeur of the scene; while little Donald, who could not utter many intelligible words, crept to my feet, appealing to me for protection, while his rosy cheeks paled even to marble whiteness.

The hurrying clouds gave to the heavens the appearance of a pointed dome, round which the lightning played in broad ribbons of fire.

The roaring of the thunder, the rushing of the blast, the impetuous down-pouring of the rain, and the crash of falling trees were perfectly deafening; and in the midst of this uproar of the elements, old Jenny burst in, drenched with wet, and half-dead with fear.

"The Lord preserve us!" she cried, "this surely is the day of judgment. Fifty trees fell across my very path, between this an' the creek. Mrs. C--- just reached her brother's clearing a few minutes before a great oak fell on her very path. What thunther!--what lightning! Misthress, dear!--it's turn'd so dark, I can only jist see yer face."

Glad enough was I of her presence; for to be alone in the heart of a great forest, in a log hut, on such a night, was not a pleasing prospect. People gain courage by companionship, and in order to re-a.s.sure each other, struggle to conceal their fears.

"And where is Mr. E---?"

"I hope not on the lake. He went early this morning to get the wheat ground at the mill."

"Och, the crathur! He's surely drowned. What boat could stan' such a scrimmage as this?"

I had my fears for poor John; but as the chance that he had to wait at the mill till others were served was more than probable, I tried to still my apprehensions for his safety.

The storm soon pa.s.sed over, after having levelled several acres of wood near the house and smitten down in its progress two gigantic pines in the clearing, which must have withstood the force of a thousand winters. Talking over the effects of this whirlwind with my brother, he kindly sent me the following very graphic description of a whirlwind which pa.s.sed the town of Guelph in the summer of 1829.

[Written by Mr. Strickland, of Douro.] "In my hunting excursions and rambles through the Upper Canadian forests, I had frequently met with extensive wind-falls; and observed with some surprise that the fallen trees lay strewn in a succession of circles, and evidently appeared to have been twisted off the stumps. I also remarked that these wind-falls were generally narrow, and had the appearance of a road, slashed through the forest. From observations made at the time, and since confirmed, I have no doubt that Colonel Reid's theory of storms is the correct one, viz., that all wind-storms move in a circular direction, and the nearer the centre the more violent the force of the wind. Having seen the effects of several similar hurricanes since my residence in Canada West, I shall proceed to describe one which happened in the township of Guelph during the early part of the summer of 1829.

"The weather, for the season of the year (May), had been hot and sultry, with scarcely a breath of wind stirring. I had heard distant thunder from an early hour in the morning, which, from the eastward, is rather an unusual occurrence. About 10 A.M., the sky had a most singular, and I must add a most awful appearance, presenting to the view a vast arch of rolling blackness, which seemed to gather strength and density as it approached the zenith. All at once the clouds began to work round in circles, as if chasing one another through the air. Suddenly the dark arch of clouds appeared to break up into detached ma.s.ses, whirling and mixing through each other in dreadful commotion. The forked lightning was incessant, accompanied by heavy thunder. In a short time, the clouds seemed to converge to a point, which approached very near the earth, still whirling with great rapidity directly under this point; and apparently from the midst of the woods arose a black column, in the shape of a cone, which instantly joined itself to the depending cloud. The sight was now grand, and awful in the extreme. Picture to your imagination a vast column of smoke, of inky blackness, reaching from the earth to heaven, gyrating with fearful velocity--bright lightnings issuing from the vortex--the roar of the thunder--the rushing of the blast--the crash of timber--the limbs of trees, leaves and rubbish, mingled with clouds of dust, whirling through the air;--you then have a faint idea of the scene.

"I had ample time for observation, as the hurricane commenced its devastating course about two miles from the town, through the centre of which it took its way, pa.s.sing within fifty yards of where a number of persons, myself among the rest, were standing, watching its fearful progress.

"As the tornado approached, the trees seemed to fall like a pack of cards before its irresistible current. After pa.s.sing through the clearing made around the village, the force of the wind gradually abated, and in a few minutes died away entirely.

"As soon as the storm was over, I went to see the damage it had done. From the point where I first observed the black column to rise from the woods and join the cloud, the trees were twisted in every direction. A belt of timber had been levelled to the ground about two miles in length, and about one hundred yards in breadth. At the entrance of the town it crossed the river Speed, and uprooted about six acres of wood, which had been thinned out, and left by Mr. Galt (late superintendent of the Canada Company), as an ornament to his house.