At the end of this island I saw a torrent of water [153] which descended from a high elevation on the River of Canada. Upon this elevation the land is uniform and pleasant, although in the interior high mountains are seen some twenty or twenty-five leagues distant, and near the first fall of the Saguenay. We came to anchor at Quebec, a narrow passage in the River of Canada, which is here some three hundred paces broad. [154] There is, on the northern side of this passage, a very high elevation, which falls off on two sides. Elsewhere the country is uniform and fine, and there are good tracts full of trees, as oaks, cypresses, birches, firs, and aspens, also wild fruit-trees and vines which, if they were cultivated, would, in my opinion, be as good as our own. Along the shore of Quebec, there are diamonds in some slate-rocks, which are better than those of Alençon. From Quebec to Hare Island is a distance of twenty-nine leagues. ENDNOTES: 147. _Saut de St Louis_, about three leagues above Montreal. 148. _Isle au Lieure_ Hare Island, so named by Cartier from the great number of hares which he found there. Le soir feusmes à ladicte ysle, ou trouuasmes grand nombre de lieures, desquelz eusmes quantité: & par ce la nommasmes l'ysle es lieures.--_Brief Récit_, par Jacques Cartier, 1545, D'Avezac ed p. 45. The distances are here overestimated. From Hare Island to the northern shore the distance is four nautical miles, and to the southern six. 149. The point nearest to Hare Island is Cape Salmon, which is about six geographical miles from the Isle au Coudres, and we should here correct the error by reading not one but two leagues. The author did not probably intend to be exact. 150. _Isle au Coudre.--Vide Brief Récit_, par Jacques Cartier, 1545, D'Avezac ed. p. 44; also Vol. II. of this work, p. 172. Charlevoix says, whether from tradition or on good authority we know not, that "in 1663 an earthquake rooted up a mountain, and threw it upon the Isle au Coudres, which made it one-half larger than before."-- _Letters to the Duchess of Lesdiguieres_, London, 1763, p. 15. 151. This was probably about two leagues from the Isle aux Coudres, where is a small stream which still bears the name La Petite Rivière. 152. _Isle d'Orléans.--Vide_ Vol. II. p. 173.