TRABOGENING. SNOW-SHOEING. 303 



the fair ones look more blooming. The sleighing party 

 generally drives to an " eight " or a " ten-mile house " 

 where tea, &c., is ready for them. Or perhaps they have 

 a dance, and drive home by moonlight, the latter part of 

 the proceeding, when the right people manage to get 

 together, being by no means the least pleasant part of the 

 programme. Another winter's amusement, viz. " trabo- 

 gening " is also peculiar to Canada. For this four items 

 are requisite, viz. a trabogen, a steep hill, a young 

 gentleman, and a young lady. Contrary to etiquette in 

 other matters the gentleman sits with his back to the 

 lady in the front or bow of the trabogen, holding on with 

 his hands and steering with his feet. As he cannot hold 

 on to his vehicle and hold his partner too, she is compelled 

 to hold on to him. The sensation is curious but pleasant, 

 and the pace is great ; but like every other pleasure it 

 has its drawback in this case a literal one. 



When the snow gets deep, although the roads are beaten 

 smooth and hard, one cannot walk in the woods or the 

 fields without snow shoes. Snow-shoeing is very hard 

 and laborious work immediately after a heavy fall of 

 snow, but in the latter part of winter when the snow gets 

 well packed and hardened, a man will walk nearly, if not 

 quite as far and as fast on snow shoes as on the bare 

 ground. In most Canadian cities and towns there are snow- 

 shoe clubs, and when the snow is in good order the young 

 people of both sexes meet and have pleasant walking ex- 

 cursions on the ice and through the woods, and the young 

 men have snow-shoe races. 



There is nothing left for the sportsman in winter but 

 to make long excursions into the forest. 



