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 /■y 
 
 Mission Life,"! 
 Oct. 1. 1866. J 
 
 REVIEW. 
 
 3G3 
 
 first year, I received the following account from the BishoiD — " Poor 
 Mr Ison was released most easily and he.ppily on Monday evening, 
 and I followed him to the grave as chief mourner yesterday. It was 
 a melancholy scene." 
 
 Such was our beginning—" Toiling, rejoicing, son-oiving:* 
 
 {To he continued.) 
 
 REVIEW. 
 
 ii 
 
 A Year's Journey through the Diocese of Rupert's Land. Being a review by 
 the Editor of the North-West Passage Over-Land. Messrs Cassell, 
 Petter, and Galpin. 
 Some few years back the writer of the present notice had the pleasure 
 of meeting the then Bishop of Rupert's Land in a not altogether unedu- 
 cated company, in the neighbourhood of Oxford, and well remembers the 
 repeated whisper, Where is it ? Without, therefore, venturing to presume 
 upon the sa. le ignorance in any of our readers, it may be well to say 
 that the dioce ^ of Rupert's Land, before the dioceses of British Columbia 
 and of New Westminster were taken from it, was nominally conterminous 
 with the vast territory of the Hudson's Bay Company, stretching across 
 the Rocky Mountains, from the Atlantic, on the one hand, to the Pacific on 
 the other. Its present extent may be illustrated by the fact* that, at a 
 recent meeting of his clergy, the Bishop, when accounting for the 
 absence of two of their body, had to explain that the district in which one 
 was placed was distant 1200 miles to the east, and that the other would have 
 had to travel no less than 2500 from the north-west. We may add, that the 
 country is named after Prince Rupert, who, in 1688, erected Fort Charles 
 in James's Bay. The Hudson's Bay Company was incorporated by Charles 
 XL in 1670 — its object being to trade with the Indians in furs, which are 
 still the staple commodity of the country. 
 
 The native population of Rupert's Land is upwards of 100,000, and that 
 of British Columbia, on the other side of the Rocky Mountains, is estimated 
 at 80,000. We have only to bear these facts in mind to understand theT 
 interest which must attach to an account of a lengthened sojourn in such a 
 country. A glance at the map which accompanies this number of Mission 
 Life will show at once the importance, from a more general point of view, 
 of a North-West Passage by Land, and the advantages which must accrue to 
 commerce and civilisation, not less than to the cause of religion, by the 
 opening of what is likely to become the great high road of the world, 
 
 * Work on the Colonies, p. 82. 
 
 4 
 
364 
 
 MISSION LIFE. 
 
 fMission Lira. 
 L Oot. I, 1866? 
 
 . mission Lir«, 
 
 identify anv of f. ^ "''^' ^^ *^^ reader can h. i» , "'*''^"* ^^^^ 
 
 The Bishop is off on a trip of hvn .u ^ Rupert's Land :-. 
 
 under that time, but I don't^? V ^^''^ '»°'^tl^«- He think« J 
 weather, and dogs. He lefl V °^ ^' ^^" ' «^«" with every adv ^' ""'^ ^° ^' 
 three men starfP^ f 1 *^'^ «tovved awav in T"'^ f 'vantage of men, 
 
 •months. X ;/ r r" '/ ""•"' ^"d * 4 lonH^'r- ..''^ ^^ ^'^^^^'J^ed 
 remote places W. . """^ ^°" ^'^^ «°d leave f hlJJ \Z^^' ''^''^ 'winter 
 
 wildernesrw^e^t' ''/"^^ ''^^ -liege ,fe?^m^;'"' ''" ^° *^o- 
 outinthe'hu:h™r:;^rpU^^a^^^^^^^^ ^e^JZ^-^^Z^^^ the 
 
 Htt:;rrot^^^^^^^^^ t P"-^^^^^^^ f- t'S:? 
 
 te opens up ' / tt. ^^ ^'^ '^^"^"°° -»d shakW wit? u'''^ ''" ^'' ^^'^^^ '^ 
 consrg„mgti:;:;jf ;:^r« ^^i,"^ '"- ^^^ ^lanke^ ^Ik LV: '" * ^-"ing when 
 
 . .et someLCCd ^;:eltf ^^-^ ^^ ^^ --"e^nar.:^^^^^^^ 
 But to our book. First fn. +1. x, 
 
 of a commandinff blnff «) • u "^^^^ out with green clinm»„ + vueoec— 
 ^aw^nce, so a. fo'Su ^^T"' *° "" "P - '^"Sl :?:,t''lt 
 
 \ 
 
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 Mission Life.n 
 Oot. 1. 1866. J 
 
 REVIEW. 
 
 SG5 
 
 }. 
 i 
 
 ■i 
 
 $. 
 
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 Fort Garry, situated, indeed, on its banks, but 500 miles distant ? Two 
 crazy birch-bark canoes, sitting so lightly upon the water that a ))uft' of 
 wind would drive them about like a walnut-shell, were eventually 
 chartered, but no guide could be secured. The baggage was necessarily 
 limited by the nature of the conveyance — it consisted of twenty pounds 
 of flour, the same of pemmican, (a species of dried meat,) a little salt pork, 
 some grease, tinder, and matches, a small quantity of tea, salt, tobacco, 
 and plenty of ammunition, a tin kettle and frying-pan, some blankets, and 
 A waterproof sheet, a small axe, with a gun and hunting knife a piece. 
 Many were the adventures of the journey. At first all went well. 
 
 " Wo glided along pleasantly enough, lazily paddling or floating quietly down 
 the sluggish stream. The day was hot and bright, and we courted the grateful 
 Bhade of the trees which overhung the bank on either side. The stillness of the 
 woods were broken by the dip of our paddles, the occasional splaf i of a fish, or 
 the rry of various birds. The squirrel played and chirruped among the branches 
 of the trees, the spotted woodpecker tapped on the hollow trunk, while perched 
 4iigh on the topmost bough of some withered giaut of the forest the eagle and 
 hawk uttered their harsh and discordant screams. . . . Thoroughly did we 
 enjoy these wild scenes and sounds ; but soon the unvarying sameness of the 
 river, and the limited prospect, shut in by ri-sing banks on either side, gave a 
 monotony to our daily journey ; and the routine of cooking, chopping, loading 
 and unloading canoes, paddling and shooting, amusing enough at first, began to 
 grow rather tiresome." 
 
 After a few days' monotonous voyaging, it was decided to try a night 
 journe3\ The night was clear and starlight, but ominous clouds soon be- 
 gan to roll up. Before long — 
 
 " The darkness became complete ; then, without previous warning, a dazzling 
 flash of lightning lit up for a moment the wild scene around us, and, almost in- 
 stantaneously, a tremendous clap of thunder, an explosion, like the bursting of a 
 magazine, caused ua to stop paddling, and sit silent and appalled. A fierce blast 
 of wind swept over the river, snapping great trees, like twigs, on every side ; the 
 rain poured down in floods, and soaked us through and through ; flash followed 
 flash in quick succession, with its accompanying roar of thunder. We made an 
 attempt to land at once, but the darkness was so intense that we could not see 
 to avoid the snags and fallen timber which beset the steep, slippery bank. . . . 
 There was nothing else for it but to face it out till daylight, and we therefore 
 fastened the two canoes together, and again gave ourselves up to the fury of the 
 storm. . . . Hour after hour passed by, but the storm raged as furiously, 
 and the rain came down as fast as ever. . . . The canoes were gradually 
 filling with water, which had crept up nearly to our waists, and the gunwalea 
 were barely above the surface. It became very doubtful whether they would 
 float till daybreak. The night air was raw and cold, and as we sat in our in- 
 voluntary hip-bath, with the rain beating upon us, we shivered from head to 
 foot; our teeth chattered, and our hands became so benumbed that we could 
 scarcely grasp the paddle. But we dared not take a moment's rest from our ex- 
 citing work, in watching and sheering clear of the snags and rocks, although we 
 were almost tempted to give up, and resign ourselves to chance. Never will any 
 
36G 
 
 MISSION LIFE. 
 
 [MiMlon Mfe, 
 Oct. 1, 1860. 
 
 Uct. 1.1 
 
 of VIS forget tho misery of that niglit, or the intense feeling of relief wo experienced 
 wlien wo first obMorved riither ii k-asoning of the (iirkness, tlian any positive ap- 
 pearance of light. Sliortly before this the storm began sensibly to abate, but the 
 rain poured down as fast as ever, whon we hastily landed in the gray morning on 
 a rnuddy bank, the first practicable i)laco we came to. Drawing our canoes high 
 on shore, that they might not be Sivept ofl" by the rising flood, we wrapped our- 
 selves in our dripping blankets, and, utterly weary and worn out, slept long and 
 soundly." 
 
 This is but a specimen of the perils and hardships which were en- 
 countered, and which were increased by two similar storms during the 
 eighteen days' voyage. 
 
 We are next introduced to the lied River settlement, and a post or fort 
 of the Hudson's Bay Company. Here our travellers met Bishop Anderson, 
 whoso kindness and hospitality is duly recorded. The settlement com- 
 prises a heterogeneous community of about 8000 souls, — English, Irish, 
 Scotch, English and French Canadians, Americans, English and Canadian 
 half-breeds, and Indians, — nearly all of whom are dependent upon the 
 Company. The farmers are well-to-do, " The soil is so fertile that wheat 
 is raised, year after year, on the same land, and yields fifty and sixty bushels 
 to the acre, without any manure being required." The only drawback 
 being that there is no market for the produce. " It is the interest 
 and policy of the Company to discourage emigration, and to keep the 
 country as one vast preserve for fur-bearing animals. ... At least 
 60 millions of acres of the richest soil lie ready for the farmer when he shall 
 be allowed to enter in and possess it." Hopes are held out that this time 
 may not be far distant, and that this last great monopoly is likely to give 
 way to a more enlightened jjolicy. 
 
 As it was fouL ' )ossible to attempt to cross the Rocky Mountains 
 until the foUowin- ig, it was decided to make a farther advance into a 
 
 good hunting country, and then take up winter quarters. 
 
 The record of the next few months is full of interest. The winter 
 house, which was immediately built on the banks of a srnall lake, and of 
 which, by the kind courtesy of the publishers, we are enabled to give the 
 accompanying engraving, is thus described : — 
 
 " A rude enclosure, fifteen feet by thirteen, was first made of rough poplar 
 logs, morticed together at the corners of th building. The logs, however, did 
 not by any means lie in opposition, and the sp.i,ces between them would admit of 
 a hand being passed through. As yet there was neither door, window, nor roof, 
 and the walls were but six feet high in front, and little over five feet behind. 
 These deficiencies were however soon supplied by the ingenious La Ronde, in a 
 much simpler fashion than we had expected. A doorway and window was hewn 
 through the solid walls ; a door constructed of boards from the carts ; whilst a 
 piece of parchment supplied the place of window-glass. The roof was covered in 
 by straight poles of young, dry pines, and over this was a thatch of marsh grass, 
 weighted down by loose earth thrown over. The lowness of the building ex- 
 ternally was remedied inside by digging out the ground two feet, rendering the 
 
:ocl 
 
 I 
 
 MIkrIoii Lire.l 
 Out. 1, 1866. J 
 
 REVIEW. 
 
 3G7 
 
3G8 
 
 MISSION LIFE. 
 
 rMlMlon Mfe. 
 L Oct. 1. 1866. 
 
 buildiug very much warmer. The interstices between the logs were filled up with 
 luud, mixed with chopped grans, to give it tenacity. . . . The parchment 
 windows of our little hut were so small and opaque that we could hardly see even 
 to eat by their light alone, and were generally obliged to have the door open ; 
 and thus, although the room was very small, and the fire-place very large, a crust 
 of ice formed over the tea in our tin cups, as we sat within a yard of the roaring 
 fire. One effect o' the cold was to give a most ravenous appetite for fat. Many 
 a time have we eaten great lumps of hard grease — rancid tallow, used for making 
 candles, without bread, or anything to modify it." 
 
 The journej (about 800 miles was still to be accomplished) was recom- 
 menced in April, but the final preparations for crossing the mountains 
 were not made till June, at Fort Edmonton. There several pack horses 
 were obtained, and the services of a half-breed hunter, rejoicing in the 
 name of Assiniboine, were secured, the only drawback to the efficienpies of 
 the latter being that he was one-handed, and insisted on taking his wife 
 and son with him. An unexpected addition wes also made to the party 
 in the person of an ex-schoolmaster and graduate of Cambridge, who, on 
 the breaking out of the American war, had fled from the Southern States, 
 to escape the anticipated honour of being elected a " Captain of the Home 
 Guard," and who pleaded hard to be allowed the advantage of an escort to 
 British Columbia. We do not wonder that the reviewers of the North- 
 West Passage have been unanimous in regarding Mr 0. B. as a mythic per- 
 sonage ; and whilst, therefore, accepting the statem mt of the authors, in 
 their preface to a late edition, that he is not a ficticious character, but a 
 real actor in the story, portrayed as faithfully and truly as it lay in their 
 power to depict him, we can only express a I'egret that some enterpris- 
 ing publisher has not secured the individual, for the sake of making known 
 his history, which, if put forth, say under the title of the " Gentleman in 
 Black," would most effectually and for ever eclipse its only possible rival 
 in the way of biography, " The Woman in White." 
 
 From Fort Edmonton the only available track was that of a party of 
 Canadian emigrants, who had gone on the same route the preceding year, 
 but of whom nothing had since been heard. The following extract will 
 give some idea of the nature of the travelling from this point : — 
 
 " The huge trunks which barred the path rendered our progress very laborious. 
 The pack horses wearied us by breaking away into the forest, rather than leap 
 over the obstructions in the way, and from morning to night we were incessantly 
 running after them to drive them back. Then they rushed about in every direc- 
 tion but the right one, crashing and tumbling amongst the timber, and often 
 involving themselves in some serious embarrassment. Jamming their packs be- 
 tween adjacent trees, trying to pass under an inclining trunk, too low to admit 
 the saddle, or jumping into collections of timber, where their legs became hopelessly 
 
 entangled The trail had been made by the Canadians when the river was 
 
 low, and was now frequently lost in deep water. At these points we vere obliged 
 to cut a new line for ourselves along steep, timber-strewn hill-sides. The forest 
 was as dense as ever, and the trees of the largest 'Muskegs' occupied the hollows 
 
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 MIminn Life.-| 
 Oct. 1, 186«. J 
 
 REVIEW. 
 
 369 
 
 between the pine-clad hills, which ran up, at short intorvals, with steep front 
 towards the river. The horses mired, and were dragged out — walked into the 
 river, and were hauled back — entangled themselves in fallen timber, and were 
 chopped out — or hid themselves in the thick wood, and had to be sought." 
 
 On one occasion a raft, which hac'. been laboriously nade for one of the 
 numerous crossings ot the river, was upset, and one of the horses lost, 
 and almost all their stores. Here is Mr O. B.'s commentary on the 
 event : — 
 
 " I 've had a terrible shock to-day — a terrible shock ! Mihifrifjidut horror mem- 
 Ira quatit. I 'm trembling vith the recollection of it nr<v. Ah I doctor, doctor, 
 you don't know what I suffered. The souL'd of this dreadful water in my ears is 
 more than I can bear. I want to know v/hether you think there will be any 
 more rivers to cross. But please move on a few miles, please do — there 's a good 
 fellow, just to oblige me, out of hearing of this terrible noise. Heu me mUerum I 
 iterum iterumque, strepitum fluminum audio / " 
 
 However, Mr 0. B. betook himself, as usual in such emergencies, to the 
 study of a pocket edition of Paley's " Evidences," and soon regained his 
 e( uanimity. But at the next river, nothing would induce him to attempt 
 the passage " until, roused by the prospect of being left behind, just as the 
 last horse left the bank, he rushed madly in, and g-.^ ping its flowing tail 
 -with both hands was towed triumphantly over. Aft".! this great success 
 his anxiety about prospective rivers was greatly dt '^rtased." 
 
 On the 27th of July, some days after the descent of the western 
 side of the mountains had been commenced, and when still more than 
 one hundred miles from the nearest post, Kamloops, the trail came to 
 ati end. The emigrants had evidently given up the work of cutting 
 their way by land in despair, had killed their horse^j, and made a raft, and 
 committed themselves to the river. A council of war was now held — tbo 
 river was known to abound with rapids — the requisites for making a suit- 
 able raft were wanting, it was therefore determined to persevere, and try 
 to cut a way along the banks of the river. Terrible were the hardships 
 endured, and it was only by killing and eating two of their horses — them- 
 selves reduced to skin and bone — that they escaped a miserable death by 
 starvation. From two to five miles a day was the average progress made, 
 and that only by the desperate exertions of men struggling for their lives. 
 At last, however, at the end of August Kamloops was reached. Hei 3 tidings 
 were first heard of the Canadian emigrants. Their raft had been upset 
 at the " Qrand Bapid," and a large number of them drowned. The others 
 had reached Kamloops more dead than alive. Three of their number who 
 had been separated from the rest had perished in the most horrible 
 manner, two of them having murdered their comparilon, and one of the 
 two having prolonged his life a few days by killing his fellow-mur< 
 derer. 
 
 By the middle of September, New "Westminster was safely reached. 
 
 We are sorry to say that throughout the book the only allusion to the 
 efforts for the introduction of Christianity into the countries described is 
 
 
370 
 
 MISSION LI7E. 
 
 [MisBion Life, 
 Uct. 1, 1866. 
 
 an account of a Bomish Mission Station. An unfavourable impression of 
 Protestant Missions in Rupert's Land seems to have been created, some 
 explanation of which may be found in the fact that the Society for the 
 Propagation of the Gospel is only able to expend somewhat less than £400 
 a year in this diocese, and that though the Church Missionary Society is 
 enabled to support as many as nineteen clergymen, its revenues are 
 manifestly unequal to the task of evangelising so vast a territory. The 
 blame, therefore, if any, rests with the general body of English Church- 
 men. 
 We quote the description of the presiding Romish priest : — 
 
 "P^re Lacome was an exceedingly intelligent man, and we fouud his society 
 very agreeable. Although a French Canadian, he spoke English very fluently, 
 and his knowledge of the Cree language was acknowledged by the half-breeds to 
 be superior to their own. Gladly accepting his invitation to stay and dine, we 
 followed him into his house, which contained only a single room, with a sleeping- 
 loft above. The furniture consisted of a small table, and a couple of rough chairs, 
 and the walls were adorned with several coloured prints, amongst which were a 
 portrait of his holiness the Pope, another of the bishop of the Red River, and a 
 picture representing some very substantial and stolid-looking angels, lifting very 
 jolly saints out of the flames of purgatory. After a capital dinner on soup, fish, 
 and dried meat, with delicious vegetables, we strolled round the settlement in 
 company with our host. He showed us several very respectable farms, with rich 
 corn-fields ; large bands of horses, and herds of fat cattle. He had devoted him- 
 self to the work of improving the condition of his fiock, had brought out at great 
 expense ploughs and other farming implements for their use, and was at present 
 completing a corn-mill to be worked by horse power. He had built a chapel, and 
 established schools for the half-breed children. The substantial bridge we had 
 crossed was the result of his exertions. Altogether, this little settlement was 
 the most flourishing- community we had seen since leaving Red River, and it must 
 be confessed that the Romish priests far exceed their Protestant brethren in 
 missionary enterprise and influence. They have established stations at Isle li la 
 Crosse, St Alban's, St Ann's, and other places far out in the wilds, undeterred by 
 danger or hardship, and, gathering half-breeds and Indians around them, have 
 taught, with considerable success, the elements of civilisation as well as religion." 
 
 After a short sojourn at Victoria, Vancouver's Island, undeterred by 
 their former experiences, Lord Milton and Dr Cheadle undertook another 
 journey, to visit the gold districts of Cariboo, of which a most graphic 
 description is given. 
 
 The interest of the " North- West Passage " must be our apology for this 
 long notice. We heartily commend the book to our read ,s, only adding 
 that, besides its many other attractions, it is admirably illustrated, and 
 printed in a type to which we only regret that publishers do not oftener 
 treat the reading public. 
 
 i 
 
 M