100 SUGAR- MAKING AND LUMBERING. 



The wild lands of this county abound in maple-trees, 

 and the manufacture of sugar is another branch of 

 industry which is prosecuted by many, as subsidiary to 

 their farming operations. The sap of this tree, as I 

 have already said, begins to flow before the ground is 

 naked enough of snow for field-operations. The season 

 commences here on the 20th of March. The practice is 

 much the same as I have already described in Lower 

 Canada. Two men go into the woods with three or 

 four kettles, They will tap 800 to 1000 trees, and will 

 make 1000 to 1200 Ib. of sugar, for which there is 

 a ready sale at 5d. per Ib. 4d. sterling. The natives 

 prefer it to the West India sugar ; and, from my own 

 experience, I should say, that those w\io have accus 

 tomed themselves to its agreeable flavour will scarcely 

 relish the comparatively tasteless sugar of the sugar 

 cane countries. 



The structure of Albert County is peculiarly favour 

 able to the prosecution of another branch of business, 

 that of lumbering, to which I have already many times 

 alluded, as by no means so consistent with the simultaneous 

 pursuit of profitable farming. The hilly nature of the 

 surface gives rise to numerous streams and waterfalls, 

 which have proved only so many temptations to the 

 proprietors to erect saw-mills, and to embark in the 

 lumber-trade for the purpose of keeping these mills 

 employed. The consequence has been that, while all 

 unite in saying that a man may here make money by 

 farming, if he attends to nothing else, it is, nevertheless, 

 the fact that a very large proportion of the farmers are 

 in difficulties from the failure of the trade in lumber. 

 To a great many parts of this province it will be a lucky 

 day when the woods shall be so far robbed of valuable 

 timber as to hold out no promise of gain to those unsteady 

 farmers who shall engage in cutting or in conveying it 

 to market. 



