SOLON ROBINSON, 1845 541 



On the flats of Lake St. Clair, 1 we found several ves- 

 sels aground, and some of them most interested expressed 

 a wish that John Tyler was under them with the bill 

 that he pocketed last spring, which contained an appro- 

 priation for the improvement of this long neglected and 

 easily improved channel. The same bill contained an 

 appropriation for a canal between Lakes Huron and Su- 

 perior. Both of these improvements are far more needed 

 than the enormous mis-improvement in Texas. 



While crossing Lake St. Clair, we were met by a 

 "Norther," that bid us not approach the angry waves 

 of Lake Huron, and so we spent the night at "China," 

 a very "Celestial" wood yard on the St. Clair river. 



This was the Sabbath, and by order of Captain Wil- 

 kins, notice was given on shore, as well as through all 

 the thickly peopled parts of our floating house, to as- 

 semble in our spacious cabin, and listen to a discourse 

 from one of our passengers, the Rev. Mr. Todd. 



Before morning the ground was covered with a sheet 

 decidedly whiter than those we were lying in and the 

 wind gave notice that it was lately from "the copper 

 region." 



In the course of the day we made a demonstration of 

 what we would do if we could, and ran up the river 14 

 miles to Port Huron, near the entrance into the Lake, and 

 opposite Port Sarnin, the talked of termination of the 

 Toronto Rail Road, and just below one of our impreg- 

 nable fortresses called Fort Gratiot, the walls of which 

 are a picket fence that looks as though it would make a 

 tolerable respectable sheep pen. 2 



1 The St. Clair River, originally called Sinclair in honor of Pat- 

 rick Sinclair, a British officer who in 1765 purchased a tract of 

 land along the river, forms an outlet for Lake Huron and dis- 

 charges its waters by several channels into Lake St. Clair. The 

 delta thus formed is known as the St. Clair Flats. 



2 The picket fence seen by Robinson inclosed a small cemetery 

 where soldier victims of a cholera epidemic of 1832 were buried. 

 See "History of Fort Gratiot," in Michigan Historical Collections, 

 18:673. 



