The eldest, Eliza, was wedded to Sir
George Denys, Bart.; the second, Caroline, to Col.
Alexander Houstoun,
of Clerkington; the third, Isabella, to a wealthy French nobleman,
Baron de Veauce; the fourth, Mary Jane, to Sir James Matheson, Bart.;
the fifth died at the age of 18. The eldest son [229] "Spencer" is a
General officer. There were several other sons; George Ramsay, who
entered the army, Michael Henry and Col. Charles Perceval.
I can recall the time also when Lady Dalhousie and Mrs. Sheppard, of
Woodfield, would come to Spencer Wood, in their botanizing excursions.
Spencer Wood, later on, was also a favorite resort of Lady Aylmer, in
1832, whilst at an earlier period, the Duke of Richmond's family, in
1818, used to come and ramble about the grounds, lunching there with
all the junior folks.
This charming and beloved lady, my old friend, Ann Perceval, died at
Lewes Castle, Stornaway. Scotland, the seat of her son in law, Sir
James Matheson, on the 23rd Nov., 1876, most deservedly regretted, at
the very advanced age of eighty-seven years." - 24 January, 1877.
Spencer Wood garden is described in London's Encyclopedia of Gardening,
page 341, and also in the Gardener's Magazine for 1837, at page 467. Its
ornate style of culture, which made it a show-place for all strangers
visiting Quebec, was mainly due to the scientific and tasty arrangements
of an eminent landscape gardener, M. P. Lowe, [230] now in charge of the
Cataraqui conservatories.
Well can we recall the time when this lordly demesne extended from
Wolfefield, adjoining Marchmont, to the meandering Belle-Borne brook,
which glides past the porter's lodge at Woodfield, due west, the historic
stream Ruisseau Saint Denis, up which clambered the British hero,
Wolfe, to conquer or die, intersecting it at Thornhill. It was then a
splendid old seat of more than one hundred acres, a fit residence for the
proudest nobleman England might send us as Viceroy - enclosed east and west
between two streamlets, hidden from the highway by a dense growth of oak,
maple, dark pines and firs - the forest primeval - letting in here and there
the light of heaven on its labyrinthine avenues; a most striking
landscape, blending the sombre verdure of its hoary trees with the soft
tints of its velvety sloping lawn, fit for a ducal palace. An elfish plot
of a flower garden, alas! how much dwarfed, then stood in rear of the
dwelling to the north, it once enjoyed the privilege of attracting many
eyes. It had also an extensive and well-kept fruit and vegetable garden,
enlivened with flower beds, the centre of which was adorned with the
loveliest possible circular fount in white marble, supplied with the
crystal element from the Belle-Borne rill by a hidden aqueduct;
conservatories, graperies, peach and forcing houses, pavilions
picturesquely hung over the yawning precipice on two headlands, one
looking towards Sillery, the other towards the Island of Orleans, the
scene of many a cosy tea-party; bowers, rustic chairs perdues among
the groves, a superb bowling green and archery grounds.
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