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to contribute greatly to it. There are, fays he, hii- 

 mid foils in the warmeft climates, and very dry foils 

 in the coldefl ; but a certain mixture of wet and dry 

 forms ice and fnow, the quantity of which deter- 

 mines the degree and duration of cold. Now, who- 

 ever has travelled ever fo little in Canada muft be 

 fenfible that this mixture obtains there in a very re- 

 markable manner. There is undoubtedly no coun- 

 try in the world which abounds more with water, 

 and there are few which have a greater mixture of 

 ftones and fand. With all this it rains very feldom 3 

 and the air is extremely pure and wholefome, an e- 

 vjdent proof of the natural drynefs of the foil.- In 

 effect, Father Bretani tells us, that during the fix- 

 teen years he was employed as miffionary in the 

 country of the Hurons, there were there at the fame 

 time to the number of fixty French, feveral of whom 

 were of a very delicate complexion, all of them had 

 been very ill fed, and had befides endured hardfhips 

 beyond what could be imagined, and yet that not 

 one of that number had died, i 



It is true, this prodigious number of rivers and 

 lakes, which take up as much fpace in new France 

 as one half the continent of Europe, Ought to fur- 

 nifh the air with a continual fupply of frefh vapours* 

 but befides that the greateft part of thefe waters are 

 extremely clear, and upon a fandy bottom, their 

 great and continual agitation by blunting the effi- 

 cacy of the fun's rays, prevents vapours from being 

 exhaled in great quantities, or foon caufes them to 

 fall again in mifts. For the winds raife as freqjuent 

 and violent tern pells upon thefe frelh-water feas as 

 upon the ocean, which is likewife the true reafori 

 why it rains fo feldom at fea. 



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