Our Most Illustrious Tourists, [112] The Eldest Son Of The
Queen, The Prince Of Wales, His Brothers, The Princes Alfred
And Arthur,
the Dukes of Newcastle, of Athol, of Manchester, of Beaufort, of Argyle,
of Sutherland, Generals Grant and Sherman,
And Prince Napoleon Bonaparte,
it is said, took their leave of Quebec without having visited that
interesting locality, "la Ruelle des Chiens," Sous-le-Cap street,
probably unconscious of its very existence! Nevertheless, this street
possesses great historical interest. It has re-echoed the trumpet sounds
of war, the thundering of cannon, the briskest musketry; there fell
Brigadier-General Arnold, wounded in the knee: carried off amid the
despairing cries of his soldiers, under the swords of Dambourges, of the
fierce and stalwart Charland, of the brave Caldwell, followed by his
friend Nairn and their chivalrous militiamen. Our friends, the
annexationists of that period, were so determined to annex Quebec, that
they threw themselves as if possessed by the evil one upon the barriers
(there were two of them) in Sous-le-Cap street and in Sault-au-Matelot
street; each man, says Sanguinet, wearing a slip of paper on his cap on
which was written "Mors aut Victoria," "Death or Victory!" One
hundred years and more have elapsed since this fierce struggle, and we are
not yet under Republican rule!
A number of dead bodies lay in the vicinity, on the 31st December, 1775;
they were carried to the Seminary. Ample details of the incidents of this
glorious day will be found in "QUEBEC PAST AND PRESENT." It is believed
that the first barrier was placed at the foot of the stone demi-lune,
where, at present, a cannon rests on the ramparts; the second was
constructed in rear of the present offices of Mr. W. D. Campbell, N.P., in
Sault-au-Matelot street.
Sault-au-Matelot street has lost the military renown which it then
possessed; besides the offices of M. Ledroit, of the Morning Chronicle,
and of the timber cullers, it now is a stand for the carters, and a
numerous tribe of pork merchants, salmon preservers and coopers, whose
casks on certain days encumber the sidewalks.
St. Paul street does not appear on the plan of the city of Quebec of 1660,
reproduced by the Abbe Faillon. This quarter of the Lower Town, so
populous under the French regime, and where, according to Monseigneur de
Laval, there was, in 1661, "magnus numerus civium" continued, until
about 1832, to represent the hurry-scurry of affairs and the residences of
the principal merchants, one of the wealthiest portions of the city.
There, in 1793, the father of our Queen, Colonel of the 7th Fusiliers,
then in garrison at Quebec, partook of the hospitality of M. Lymburner,
one of the merchant princes of that period. Was the chere amie, the
elegant Baronne de St. Laurent, of the party? We found it impossible to
ascertain this from our old friend, Hon. William Sheppard, of Woodfield,
near Quebec (who died in 1867), from whom we obtained this incident.
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