LETTERS

FROM

A YOUNG EMIGRANT.

TO HIS MOTHER.

386, King Street, W. Toronto, October 7,

1880. 11.30 p.m.

Written while waiting for

admittance to the College.-You see I am still here, and am in a very nice boarding-house, with some nice quiet fellows, much older than I am. Twenty dollars a month. Two are in government offices, two in banks, and three in various agencies in town. A lady named Fitzgerald keeps the place. I was presented at Government House to-day. They are very nice people. I am going over to Guelph to-morrow, to see the place. Mr. Jones very kindly intro

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duced me to the head of the dominion bank here, the best bank, in case he might be of any use to me in future. Very kind of him. Of course it is very slow for me here, because all the fellows are in office from 9.30 till 4. I go to Guelph for good, when the new buildings are done, viz., November 8th. The weather here is lovely, though cold at night. Mr. Smith has lent me a horse to ride whenever I like. He is brother-in-law to Frank Jones, the fellow in the house with me, cousin to the Mr. Jones with whom I was staying. He, Mr. Smith, has a large farm about one hundred miles from here, where young English fellows learn farming. His advice is, steer clear of farming, unless you want to do one of two things: if you have a large fortune, and want to waste it; or if you haven't, and want to live on dry bread and water all your life. "Why don't you go into the bank at once, instead of doing like every other young English

fellow has done the last ten years since I have lived in Toronto-go and learn farming, get into slovenly habits, drink, and then get tired of it, come back, be helped by some unfortunate man, then disgrace him by being turned out for habits acquired whilst thrown amongst low Canadian farmers-low mean selfish men, who never spend a farthing on anything but drink?" That was Mr. Smith's advice, who came out as I have come out, took a farm, and ended by going into the Post Office and getting to the top of the tree with £3000 a year now. He has very kindly asked me to go with him up to his farm next week, "just to see your brother Englishmen, whom I make work like slaves, and notwithstanding all my cautions. Well, you will see soon enough what whisky does for a man, having nothing but his own society to depend upon." Everybody certainly says the same thing, it is being dinned into my ears from morning till night. It really seems as if there

were a conspiracy to kill in the birth every flickering love one might have, to do what one is sent out to do. I meant to write to uncle, but I quite forgot the post went out to-morrow, till I got into bed, so I had to hop out and write, for I promised him I would. Is Everard at home? I hope, oh I do hope he will get through all right! How do Frank and Bob like their school. How is Peg? How is Geoff? I have not had a letter yet since I left, so of course I am behindhand in the news. I hope grandmamma is well. I wish I had had time to say good-bye to aunts K. K. and Emma. You will be glad to hear I have been down at 8.30., an hour before breakfast, every morning. Has father tried a tricycle? Bicycles would not be the least use here. I saw a cart stick in a rut in Queen Street to-day, and it took five horses to pull it out, so you may imagine what state the roads in the country must be in. Give my love to all. Autumn tints, varying from trans

parent bright yellow to blood-red,―magnificent! All the trees so!

TO HIS MOTHER.

335, King Street, Toronto, Friday, October 22, 1880.-Last time I wrote, I said how delightfully warm it was. It is now awfully cold and bleak; bitter wind. On Tuesday and Wednesday it was frightfully cold; yesterday, it was so hot that I had to take my coat off whilst I was sitting still, sailing on the lake; to-day is what I call a great-coat day, underclothing included. I went to an evening gathering on Wednesday night-a compound of musical party and carpet dancing, -a very popular entertainment here, I hear. There was a great crowd there, and as the rooms are not large there was also a squash. I have got the invoice of something in bond from the Custom House, Guelph; I suppose it is my ring. I go up to Guelph on Thurs