Oh, Hermon! oft I wander o'er,
Thy silent records of the past,
In fancy, when the storm and roar
Of icy winter holds thee fast,
But, when the gentle spring-time tells
'Tis time to rove amid the flow'rs,
I love to walk amid thy dells,
And dream once more of happy hours.
All seems a dream! thy lovely slopes,
O'ershadowed with primeval trees,
Are rich with many blighted hopes,
And ceaseless tears, He only sees
What broken hearts, and scatter'd homes,
And grief of mourners ne'er since met,
One pictures by these solemn tombs,
This scene of parting and regret!
Bless'd spot! though long, long years ago
That loving one was buried here,
My soul still ever seeks to know
When once again we shall be near!
A day ne'er pass'd in foreign climes,
At home, or on the restless sea,
But I have sought thee many times,
Oh, Hermon! ever dear to me.
S. B. F.
In this neighbourhood is situated Mount Hermon Cemetery. It is about three
miles from Quebec, on the south side of the St. Lewis road, and slopes
irregularly, but beautifully, down the cliff which overhangs the St.
Lawrence. It is thirty two acres in extent, and the grounds were
tastefully laid out by the late Major Douglas, U. S. Engineers, whose
taste and skill had been previously shown in the design of Greenwood
Cemetery, near New York. A carriage drive, upwards of two miles in extent,
affords access to all parts of the grounds, and has been so arranged as to
afford the most perfect view of the scenery. The visitor, after driving
over the smooth lawn-like open surface, finds himself suddenly transferred
by a turn of the road into a dark avenue of stately forest trees, from
which he emerges to see the broad St. Lawrence almost beneath him, with
the city of Quebec and the beautiful slopes of Point Levi in the distance.
Many beautiful monuments now adorn the grounds, some of which are from
Montreal and some from Scotland; but the great majority are the
productions of Mr. Felix Morgan, of Quebec, and do credit to his taste and
skill. Many of them are beautiful and costly structures of Italian marble.
The Aberdeen and Peterhead granite is much used at present for monuments
to the departed.
A neat gothic lodge at the entrance of the grounds contains the office and
residence of the superintendent. In the former, a complete plan of the
grounds is kept, every separate grave being marked upon it with its
appropriate number, so that at any future time, on consulting it, the
exact spot of interment can be ascertained, and the Register which is also
kept, affords information respecting the places of birth, age, and date of
death.
There are few sites round Quebec more attractive to visit, especially
during the month of September, than the last abode of the departed,
crowning the green banks of the St. Lawrence at Sillery - the Cemetery of
Mount Hermon.
