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The fecond caufe of the extreme cold of Canada, 

 according to father Bretani, is the neighbourhood 

 of the North Sea, covered with enormous iflands of 

 ice for more than eight months of the year, there, 

 Madam, you may call to mind what I told you in 

 my fecond letter, of the cold we felt even in the 

 dog-days, from the neighbourhood of one of thefe 

 iOan^ls of ice, or rather from the wind which blew 

 upon us from that fide on which it lay, and which 

 ceafed that moment it fell to the leeward of us. It 

 is, befides, certain that it never mows here but with 

 a north-eaft wind, which blows from that quarter 

 in which the northern ice lyes ; and tho' the cold 

 is not fo very piercing when the fnow falls, yet it 

 cannot be doubted that it greatly contributes to ren- 

 der the Weil: and north-weft winds fo extremely fharp, 

 which before they reach us blow over immenfe 

 countries, and a great chain of mountains entirely 

 covered with it. 



Laftly, if we believe the Italian miffionary, the 

 height of the land is not the leaft caufe of the fub- 

 tility of the air of this' country, and confequentJy 

 of the feverity of its cold. Father Bretani endea- 

 vours to prove this height of the land from the 

 depth of the fea, which encreafes according to him 

 in proportion as you approach Canada, and from 

 the number and height of the falls fo frequent in the 

 rivers. But in my opinion the depth of the fea ab- 

 folutely proves nothing, and the falls of St. Law- 

 rence and fome other rivers in New France, no 

 more than the cataracts of the Nile. Moreover, it 

 is not obferved that, from Montreal where the falls 

 commence to the fea, the river St. Lawrence is 

 much more rapid than fome of our rivers in Eu- 

 rope. I am therefore of opinion that we muft con- 

 fine our reafoning to the ices of the north ; and that 



even 



