Post-Office, the Masonic-Hall, and the two principal Inns being situated here.

In this township there are four Grist Mills, one of them is in the centre of the upper village, and the second, which is not far from it, has also a Carding Machine and a Fulling Mill attached to it.

Independent of these, all of which have Kilns for drying oats, there are nine Saw Mills.

The upland soil of Truro is good, and in general consists of loam and gravel intermixed. It produces abundant crops, and is more grateful for the application of lime than most lands in the Province. Agriculture, both as to its theory and practice, has for some years made great advances, and consequently the farmers are in a very thriving state. The general markets of this place are Halifax and St. John.— The aspect of Truro, when viewed from the elevated land on the north east, is highly pleasing. The whole sweep of the Bason of Minas, as far as Cape Blomedon, embracing a space of more than 60 miles, is distinctly visible, while the two villages, into which the township is mainly divided, with their level marshes relieved by finely swelling uplands, and backed with wooded and undulating hills, compose the foreground of this beautiful landscape. The indenture made by the Shubenacadie, on its Western boundary, is a striking feature in this scene, and when viewed with a previous knowledge of the singular character of the river, it invests it with a pecular interest. The Shubenacadie, at the Ferry where it is a mile in width, rises fifty feet at flood tide, and at the distance of twelve miles, twenty-five or thirty feet. At times the stream runs at the rate of seven

and eight miles an hour, but notwithstanding the rapidity of the current the river is securely navigable to the distance of 30 miles, by those acquainted with its eddies. Its banks are precipitous, but in general of that formation which admits of the most fantastical appearances, being shaped by the waters, and are in most places fringed and overhung by trees of great beauty. But these banks, so romantic and inviting, to the lover of natural scenery, are also enriched with inexhaustible treasures of Plaister of Paris and Limestone, and few farms in the vicinity are deficient of these valuable resources. Quarries of excellent Free-stone are equally accessible. The line of the Bay being almost everywhere level, presents, with the exception of Savage's Island and the site of the Presbyterian Meeting House, only those views which the industry of man has created. The former, though possessing a most appropriate name, derived its appellation from an early English proprietor. It rises rather abruptly from the Bason, and contains about ten acres. It was the burial place of the French, and having been consecrated by the Catholics,is still used for the same purpose by the Indians. This spot, so lonely and neglected, upon which nature herself is making war, though marked with few memorials of its inmates, possesses a peculiar attraction for those who are fond of cherishing the reminiscences of the early periods of our history.The site of the Presbyterian Meeting House, independent of the beauty of its situation, is, for similar reasons, an object of veneration to the present race of inhabitants. It was the spot selected by their fathers only eight days after their landing in their new.

and adopted Country, for the stated worship of God, and excites a melancholy interest from the fact that all those who were first assembled there, repose in peace beneath its surface.

The township of Onslow is bounded on the north by the settlements of Earl Town and New-Annan, on the south by Colchester Bay and Truro, on the east by Kempt town, and on the west by the mouth of the Chigenois river and the township of Londonderry. The first British settlers came from the Province of Massachusetts, and were of various origin. They landed in Onslow, in the summer of 1761, to the number of 30 families, and brought with them twenty head of horned cattle, eight horses and seventy sheep, but their stock of provisions was altogether inadequate to their wants, and was consumed in six months. From this circumstance they were compelled to undergo the most severe privations, and to resort for subsistance to the most unpalatable and nauseous articles of food. During the second year Government supplied them with Indian Corn, and shortly afterwards they resorted to fishing and hunting. On their arrival they found the Country laid waste to prevent the return of the Acadians, but 570 acres of Marsh land were still under dyke, and about 40 acres of upland round the ruins of the houses, were cleared, though partially overgrown by young shrubs. Remains of the French roads, which were chiefly confined to the marshes, are still visible, as also parts of their bridges. Near the sites of their buildings have also been found,at various times, farming implements and kitchen utensils, which they had buried in the earth under the hope of being per

mitted, at some future period, to return to their possessions. It appears, from manuscript letters of the late Colonel McNutt, which are still extant, that the settlers encountered great difficulty in procuring their grant, and that it was not only different from what they had been led to expect, but also, much more restrictive in its terms than that of the township of Truro. The Onslow patent reserves to the Crown "all mines of gold, silver, lead, copper and coals," and also" one thousand acres for the use of a Church, a School and Glebe." It also differed from the Truro grant, in the manner in which the quit rent was reserved" being one farthing per acre,payable in three years," and in default of payment, the grant was declared to be null and void. It was also subject to forfeiture, if not registered and docketted at the Auditor's office, within six months. It was signed by Lord William Campbell, on the 21st, audited on the 22d, and registered the 23d of February, 1769. It would be interesting to ascertain the causes which occasioned this marked difference in the two grants, though perhaps it is now impossible. Chigenois river, the western boundary of the township, takes its rise in a lake near the summit of the high lands which seperate the Gulf of St. Lawrence from Colchester Bay. The situation of this lake which is only about four miles in circumference, is strikingly romantic. Embosomed in woods, and environed with wild and precipitous heights, its pellucid waters, completely sheltered from every wind, float in stillness round a large rock which rises boldly in the centre. About a mile below the lake, the river, which is there about thirty feet wide,rushes over a ledge of rocks fully forty feet

in perpendicular height, and flows along, now with high and rugged banks, now through fine and sheltered, though small intervales, to where it meets the tide, about four miles from its mouth. Seams of coal have been found on its banks, but have hitherto been worked to little or no advantage, although the appearances are promising. North River runs in the same high lands as the Chigenois; on one of its branches a valuable salt spring has been discovered, and seams of coal have also been found, one of which has been worked for about four years, with considerable success. Roots, plants and trees, have been discovered in the strata, which have retained, on their transmutation, a singular resemblance to their original form. The intervale land on this river contains nine hundred acres, of the first quality; some of it having produced 14 wheat crops in succession, without the assistance of manure. There are in this township one Grist Mill, with a Kiln for drying Oats, and eight Saw Mills, one of which includes a Carding machine. The character of the upland soil upon the Bay is various, and depends much on its situation, with respect to the rise and fall of the surface.When partaking of the former it is good, when of the latter often the reverse. In general it is an intermixture of clay and sand. The whole front of the township is cleared upland, and is nominally divided into three villages, though there is no where to be found such a number of houses so closely situated as to merit the distinction. Halifax is the staple market for this place, as well as Truro, though in the autumn, a few small vessels are loaded with potatoes, turnips, &c. for St. John, New-Brunswick, but this trade is declining.