St. John, the chief city of New Brunswick at the mouth of the St. John River, used to be a centre of anti-American sentiment in Canada. This was because the city was founded by the Tories, who left the United States after we won our independence. St. John to-day is a busy commercial centre competing with Halifax for first place as Canada’s all-year Atlantic port. It is the eastern terminal of the Canadian Pacific Railroad, whose transatlantic liners use the port during the winter. It enjoys the advantage over Halifax of being some two hundred miles nearer Montreal, but, like Halifax, suffers on account of the long railway haul and high freight rates to central Canada. As a matter of fact, New England, and not Canada, is the natural market for the Maritime Provinces, and every few years the proposal that this part of Canada form a separate Dominion comes up for discussion. Such talk is not taken seriously by the well informed, but it provides a good safety valve for local irritation. CHAPTER VII IN FRENCH CANADA Come with me for a ride about Quebec, the oldest city in Canada, the ancient capital of France in America, and a stronghold of the Catholic Church. We go from the water-front through the Lower Town, up the heights, and out to where the modern city eats into the countryside. The Lower Town is largely French. The main part of the Upper Town used to be enclosed by walls and stone gates, parts of which are still standing. The dull gray buildings are of stone, with only shelf-like sidewalks between them and the street. Most of the streets are narrow. The heights are ascended by stairs, by a winding street, and in one place by an elevator. The old French _caleche_, a two-wheeled vehicle between a jinrikisha and a dog-cart, has been largely displaced by motor-cars, which can climb the steep grades in a jiffy. Even the ancient buildings are giving way to modern necessities, and every year some are torn down.