Lady Mary and her Nurse

t her brother was dangerously ill, confined to what was feared would prove his deathbed, and that he earnestly desired to see her before h

ould return, as her brother lived on the shores of one of the small lakes, near the head waters of the Otonabee river, a great way off; but she prom

ity to instruct and amuse her. On entering her nursery one day, after enjoying a long drive in the country, great was her joy to find her good

and did not annoy her with questions about trifling matters; she spoke low and gently to her, and tried to comfort her when she saw large tears falling on the

ed Lady Mary an Indian basket, made of birch-bark, very richly

endid colours, and strang

ch was sewn down with coarse-looking thread, which her nurse told her was nothing but the sinews of the deer, dried and beaten fine, and drawn out like thread. Then, taking an end of it in her han

refore are well adapted to sew together such things as moccasins, leggings, and garments made of the skins of wild animals. The finer thr

cordage when coiled up and fit for use. This 'wah-tap' is very valuable to these poor Indians. There is also another plant, called Indian hemp, which is a small shrubby kind of milk-weed, that grows on gravelly islands. It bears white flowers, and the branches are long and slender; under the bark there is a fine silky thread covering the wood; this

lady was examining the contents of the small birch-box. "If you p

gave me this as a present for 'Governor's daughter,'" and Mrs. Frazer i

it is intended for-worked on the lid." The lid of this box was fastened down with a narrow slip of deer-skin; Lady

and; taste i

hat this kind old squaw has sent me; it is maple-suga

see what there is in the basket be

g this is! dear nur

n, embroidered with white beads, and coloured quills split fine,

what she took for beads were porcupine quills, cut out very finely, and strung in a pattern. They were not only nea

sheath is large enough f

couteau de chas

n educated chief of the Mud Lake Indians; she gave i

arge knife by my side;" and she laid the sheath away, after having admired its gay colours, and particularl

by a little girl, aged seven years, Rachel Muskrat; and here

ses a knife, or some other useful article, when Mrs. Frazer went again to the Lakes; but when her nurse took out of the other end of the basket a birch-bark cradle, mad

different in appearance from the Indian sugar; it was bright and sparkling, like sugar-candy, and tasted sweeter. The other sugar was dry, and slightly bitter: Mrs

Indians how to make maple

d in March, and April, yields a great deal of sweet liquor. Some Indians may have supplied themselves with this juice, when pressed for want of water; for it flows so freely in warm days in spring, that several pints can be obtained from one tree in the course of the day. By boiling this juice, it becomes very

rees, that sugar can be made fro

lds the best sap for the purpose; that of the birch-tree, I have heard, can be made into sugar; but it would require a larger quantity; weak wine, or vinegar, is made by

the sap is sweet, how can it be ma

t, unless it had been boiled a long time, so as to become very sweet, and somewhat thick. The first fermentation, she t

maples in the garden, and I would make sugar, molasses, win

aple;' the drawers in my bedroom that you think so pretty are made of it; but it is a disease in the tree that causes it to have these little marks all through the wood. In autumn, this tree improves the fo

let it grow in

om it, by boiling down the bark with a bit of copperas, in an iron vessel; so you see it is useful. The bright red flo

hat her nurse had to say about plants and trees; but Lady Mary would put aside her dolls and toys, to stand beside her to ask questions, and listen to her answers; the mor

d with the quills, as they could not possibly thread them through the eye of a needle; but her nurse told her that when they want to work any pattern in birch-bark, they trace it with some sharp-pointed instrument, such as a nail, or bodkin, or even a sharp thorn; with which they pierce holes close together round the edge of the leaf, or blade, or bird they have drawn out on the birch-bark; into these holes they insert one end of the quill, the other end is then drawn through th

s designed to represent," said Lady Mary, pointing to the figure

a racoon, my lady,

pretty creature l

being black and grey, or dun; the tail barred across, and bushy,-you have seen many sleigh

y cunning-looking fa

trees, and cling together for the sake of keeping each other warm. The choppers find as many as seven or eight in one nest, fast asleep. Most probably the young family remain with the old ones until spring, when, they separate. The racoon in its habits is

aken by them,-perhaps this is in the winter,

a chain and collar to keep him from getting away, as he used to gnaw the bars asunder; and had slily stolen a

asket, with all its Indian treasures, to show to