Page:1898 NB Magazine.djvu/117
52. From what is the word "gaspereau" derived? Was it originally French, or did the French get it from the Indians?
Philo.
Answers.
30. In the interesting notes of W. P. D. in the January number, on the burning of the St. John alms-house, in 1829, there is one slight inaccuracy in reference to the cause of the fire. It was not due to an overheated stovepipe, but originated in the bedroom of Mr. and Mrs. Betts, who were out spending the evening. While the servant girl was putting the children to bed some clothing took fire from the candle and the flames spread very rapidly. All the inmates of the building, about fifty in number, were got out in safety, and most of the effects were saved, but Mr. Betts lost very heavily, little being saved from his apartments. The burning of the former alms-house, at what is now known as the Dufferin Hotel corner, in 1819, was due to an overheated stovepipe, and this has probably led W. P. D. to inadvertently confound the two occasions. The fire in 1829 was on March 2, not March 1 as stated by W. H. B. in his query in the November number.
Old Times.
41. I agree with W. F. G., who writes in the January number "the true name of the St. John River is Wool-ahś-took." Perhaps, however, we should approach nearer the original word if we spelled it Woo-lahś-tukw. That final kw is a difficult combination to master, but an intelligent Maliseet, who could read and write English, taught me to spell the word thus, and assured me that this gave the only equivalent for the original that our alphabet offered. He pronounced the last syllable very much like kw in kwa, or like kwe with an extremely short e. That Woo-lahś-tukw is the name by which the river was known to the Indian tribes