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Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: 1 2 3 Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent Atre f ilmfo d des taux de reduction diffirents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atre reproduit en un seul clichA, 11 est fiimi A partir de Tangle supArieur gauche, de gauche it droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images nAcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m6thode. ■ : 1 , • I; 2 3 4 5 6 { ) THE ciMDiAS nmm. BY ABBE H. R. OASGRAIN Translated from the French BY A. W. L. GOJSa.F'EiR'TZ. -i^- MONTBEAL C. 0. Beauchemin & FiLs, Printers and Booksellers 256 and 258, St. Paul Street 1896 Entered according to act of Parliament of Canada in the year 1875, by Be v. H. R. Gasgrain, at the office of the Hon. Minister of Agricu],ture, Ottawa. The undersigned have acquired from Rev. H. B. Casgrain the property and the right of translation of the present work. C. O. BEAUCMEMIN & Fils, Editors & Booksellers, Montreal. 94610 mm. ^^»w!»!?w»;>?- THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. DETROIT, Do you know this smiling and fertile country, rich in historical recollections, the till then virgin soil of which was first trod by the French, our ancestors ? Do you know the verdant and undulating prairies, watered by limpid rivers, shaded by maple, plane and fig-trees and acacias, in the midst of which rises in the brilliancy of youth and futurity, the flourishing town of Detroit? If you wish to enjoy fully the enchanting spectacle which this delightful country pre- sents, whose climate has no cause for envying 'W^'" iPPffPKiPf^^lfllipWf THE CANADIAN PIONEEBS. the 8un of Italyt ascend the river Detroit, during a fresh morning of spring, when dawn has spread its humid wing over those vast plains, and the May-sun traced a luminous course through the transparent vapours of morning. In no part is the sky clearer, or nature more delightful. In no part are the undulating lines of the horizon delineated in the distance, with a purer azure. You will meet with ivild and poetical situations, romantic landscapes, hushy is- lands not unlike graceful baskets of verdure, all resounding with the mocking laughter of a multitude of birds ; pretty promontories, whose round arms frame bays full of shade and sunshine, where the wave caressed by gentle breezes, leaves on the shore a fringe of silvery spray. You will perceive valleys and hills crowned with bunches of verdure which seem to bend y ^^ilfl 1 THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. 8 so as to see themselves in the neighbouring waters. On each side the shore unfolds itself in a rugged state or covered with fine and greyish sand, bordered with lace of grass, or bustling up with tall reeds crowned with little tufts, among which hop and sway timid king- fishers which the slightest noise frightens away. Here cool streams flow, murmuring under the florid ogives of interlaced branches; there little paths, bordered with strawberries and daisies, wind round the bow of the slope; further off, the spring breeze hugs the verdant pasturage, and perfumes the air with deli- cious odours. * The thousand confused rustling noises of the waters and leaves, the warbling of birds and human voices, the bellowing of the \^t m '■ A THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. herds, the silvery and far off sounds of the bells of t?.teamers going up and down the ri veY, rise in the air, at intervals, and fill with an indescribable charm both the soul and senses. From point to point, graceful villages are seen along the shore, sometimes grouped in the elope of a bay, elsewhere resting on the sides of a hill, or crowning it like a diadem. At last you reach Detroit, whose steeples and roofs sparkle under the rays of the sun. A thousand of small crafts stirred by its industry continually leave its quays and plough the river in every direction. If I were a poet, I should willingly com- pare the graceful city to the superb swan of those countries, which awaking at morn in the midst of the reeds of the bank, flutters its white wings in taking flight and scatters around feathers and dew-drops; or still more to the splendid magnolia which grows on the banks of the river, and balanced by the perfumed breath of the morning breeze, T^ THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. spreads over the water into which it looks its image, the fruitful dupt of its ooroUa. THE PIONEER. Detroit, founded in the year 1700, by M. de La Mothe-Cadillac, has been a long time a part of Canada. The English made^a conquest of it in 1760, and preserved it until the war of 1812. Since then the United States became the fortunate possessors of all this charming country, which Father Charlebois justly called ** the garden of the land." '* Detroit," says the historian of Canada, " has preserved, in spite of all its vicissitudes, *' the character of hifl origin, and the French *' language is always in use there. Like all *' the cities founded by the great people *^ from which have sprung its inhabitants 6 THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. *^ and which has marked America with '^monuments of its genius, Detroit is des- *^ tined to become an important place, on '' account of its situation between Lake *' Huron and Lake Erie." * * * Towards the year 1770 or '80, Detroit was far from presenting the flourishing aspect which it offers at the present time. It was only a little fort, surrounded with weak ramparts and palisades, populated by few htmdreds of Canadian oolonists. A veritable tent in the idesert, this fort was the avanced guard of the colony, and conse- quently exposed continually to the incur- sions of the Indians. Around the lOrtifications extended some fields cleaned out of the forest, which the inhabitants could only cultivate at the risk * History of Canada, by M. F. X. Garneau, third edition, vol 2, page 23. ■M* THB CANADIAN PIONEERS. m of their lives, holding the mattock with one hand, and the gun with the other; and beyond, on this side, to the right and left everywhere the desert, and the immense ocean of forest, concealing under its dark vaults, a multitude of beings, a thousand timeip more cruel and formidable than tigers and reptiles. It is easy to imagine the indomitable cou- rage of thebo brave pioneers, who had dared to plant the flag of civilization in the midst of these far distant solitudes, in spite of the numberless dangers. * One of the grandest figures which the history of the new world offers after the sublime one of the missionary, is, in my opinion, that of the Canadian pioneer. He is the father of the strongest race that has been planted on the american continent : the Canadian race. 2 -f;. 8 THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. The noblest blood which has ever flown in the veins of humanity, circulates in his veins: French blood. Everywhere on this continent is to be found the Canadian pioneer, and everywhere one can follow him by the trace of his blood. Travel all over North America, from Hud- son's Bay to the Gulf of Mexico, from Halifax to San Francisco, you will everywhere find the print of his footsteps, on the snow of the pole as well as on the golden sands of California; on the sandy shores of the Atlan- tic, as well as the moss of the Rocky Moun- tains. An insatiable desire of activity devours him. He must be for ever advancing towards new discoveries, until he reaches the end of land. But it is not the sole love of adventures, nor the eager thirst for gold which urges him ; a more noble ambition a more legitimate motive directs and animates him. TT"^ ^^H nm THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. 9 One feels that he has the conscience to fulfil a veritable mission, a mysterious apos- tleship. Turn over, a moment, the pages of Uv history, and above all, the " Relations of the Jesuits,^' and everywhere you will see the Canadian pioneer, animated with an admi- rable zeal of the Indians, clearing, with heroic efforts, the road for the missionaries and himself on their behalf often working marvellous conversions. I find again in him, the three greatest types of human history. He is at the same time, priest, labourer and soldier. Priest I his ardent piety, lively faith, and zeal for the salvation of souls, soften the hardest hearts, and gain over to the faith, entire tribes. Was there ever a more beautiful priest- hood? Labourer I before his powerful axe the 10 THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. forest falls with a crash around him and his plough traces through the overturned trunks, the furrow where the green down of the future crop will soon ruffle. Soldier 1 it is by ages of combats, that he has conquered the ground which his hand cultivates. * Ah ! if I was a painter, I should like to draw on the canvas this noble figure, with his triple character of priest, labourer and soldier. In the back-ground of the picture, I would paint the immense forest in all its wild majesty. Nearer, yellow tuffs of corn growing among the calcined trunks. On the fore-ground, a portion of the great river, with its waves of emerald sparkling in the rays of the sun. Here should be seen on one side, with its remparts and palisades, the angle of a fort, m THE CANADIAN PI0NEEH8. 11 from which should arise a modest steeple surmounted by the cross ; on the other side, a band of Indians fleeing towards the border of the wood. In the centre of the picture, hair waving in the wind, eyes flashing, bleeding forehead ploughed by a bullet, should appear my brave pioneer near his plough, holding in his left hand the still smoking gun ; with the right, sprinkling the water of baptism on the brow of his conquered and dying enemy just now converted by him to the faith. Oh I how I should try to depict on this manly face, and in the attitude of this iron- muscled ploughing soldier, the calm and serene strength of the man of the fields, the invincible courage of the soldier, and the sublime enthusiasm of the priest. Certainly, this picture would not be un- worthy of the brush of Michael Angelo or Rubens. pp 12 THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. Faith, labour, courage ; priest, labourer, soldier: there is the Canadian pioneer. It is Cincinnatus, the soldier- tiller become a Christian. It is the Spartan who has passed through the catacombs. J*" You, Canadian reader, while running through these lines, can hold up your head with a noble pride, for the blood which flows in your veins, is the blood of this hero. He has nobly fulfilled his mission ; yours remains to be accomplished. The people to whom Providence has given such ancestors, if faithful to the designs of God, is necessarily destined for great things. But let us leave those teachings becoming only to white locks, and return to our story. ' ■ ?jS^^^H|PH" THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. 18 EVENING. At the distant epoch which we are describ- ing, there was a huge fur trade carried in Detroit. Attracted by the facility of reaching it, the Indians came in large numbers to sell there the produce of their hunt. There abounded, by turns, the different nations of Iroquois, Potowatomis, Illinois, Miamis, and a crowd of others. * * * Mr. Jacques Du Perron Baby was then superintendent of the Indians of Detroit. It may be easily imagined what must be the importance of this post, at that period. Mr. Baby had consequently realized, in a few years, a large fortune. Almost all the land on which Detroit stands at the present time, belonged to him, in partnership with Mr. Macomb, father of ^^f^mr^ 14 THE CANADIAN PIONKEHS. the General Macomb who commanded part of the American troops, during the war of 1812. It was after this war that Mr. Baby, for having declared himself in favour of Canada, his country, lost all the property which he had acquired in Detroit In the centre of the fort, rose up, like a charming oasis in the midst of a desert, an elegant house surrounded by gardens. This was the superintendent's residence. Loving luxury, he had lavished every care to embellish it. The garden, raised up higher than the ground, was surrounded by a terrace of grass. In the centre, the house, elegantly painted half hidden by a curtain of branches of maple- trees, pear-trees and acacias, which balanced their sparkling foliage above the roof, resem- bled a carbuncle enchased in a garland ol emeralds. i ,!li(. _;'1"<1J^",'"I'?"'" --'fl»,!«l|;iW tr|'!Nl« ^mmmmHmmmfi wmmmm THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. 16 A crowd of birds, sometimes hidden beneath the foliage, sometimes fluttering in the air, crowing and pursuing each other, describing a thousand tortuous courses with an admirable celerity, threw their joyous songs to the winds, whilst the little swallow hovering above the chimneys, mingled with their voices, its little sharp and jerked cries. It was evening. The last rays of the setting sun coloured the dome of the forest with red and saffron. The heat had been stifling during the whole day. The breeze of the evening purling among the rosetrees, dahlias, sweet-briars, in bloom, refreshed inflamed nature, and perfumed the air with intoxicating odours. * Assembled around a table spread out in the open air in the middle of the garden, loaded with dishes and bouquets of flowers m m mm "^^^^^mrmmm^n^ 16 THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. gathered from the flower-plot, the superin- tendent, and all his family were taking their evening meal. A young English officer, who had arrived at Detroit some months ago, had been invited to join the family circle. Some black slaves, employed in waiting at table, were standing behind the guests, atten- tive to their slightest signals. * " What a charming evening,'* exclaimed the Strang 3r, a fine young man, with light hair, noble and expressive appearance, with high intelligent and gallant forehead, with a bright but dreamy ej^e, " in fact only in Italy have I seen a climate equally mild, nature so delightful, and such beautiful effects of light ! " Look down there, those flakes of clouds floating in the azure of the sky. Might not one suppose them to be a scarf with fringe of purple and gold waving in the horizon? P ^ "■^J'^'V' ■"' .'.*■* _i.^]_i.i . i\^mmi^^wmi^mmmm THE CANADIAN PIONEERS. 17 *' This evening is really magnificent, re- ** plied the superintendent. We enjoy here *' a very fine climate." '* In no part have I ever seen a clearer sky, " limpider light, grander nature; but on the " other hand, we are deprived of many enjoy- ** ments accorded to the old countries. " Exiled to the extreme limits of civiliza- " tion, to how many dangers are we not '* exposed, on the part of the Indians I " " You, who have only just left the civilized *' regions of Europe, cannot form an idea of " the cruelty of the barbarous people." *' Ah I it 18 indeed a hard life in this " country." '* Yes " replied the superintendent's wife whosefine and strong physiognomy indicated a sturdy nature, only a few years ago I was obliged to act as a sentinel, gun in arm, at the door of the fort, while all the men were occupied in the environs cultivating the fields. '^ itak^j * An historical fact. 18 THE CANADIAN PIONEEHB. The conversation was interrupted by one of the black slaves, who came to inform the superintendent and his wife that an unknown woman wished to speak to them. All the guests then rose from the table. " You seem to be very sad this evening," said the officer, adressing a young girl of sixteen to eighteen years of age, whose looks easily betrayed her as the daughter of the superintendent. *' What misfortune could " then cast this veil of sadness on your •'brow?" ** Whilst all smiles around you, your heart alone is sad." *' Yet it appears to me that it is impossible ** to contemplate this serene eve, this ravish- ** ing nature without experiencing a feeling " of calm and inmost serenity." ^* Nothing beguiles me like the sight of a " beautiful evening." r. ?.'- > I .. iwn^«f*«ivif^HiMqp«pi THE CANADIAN PlONELRi}. 19 " This giucious harmony of shade and light is to me, full of mystery and rapture," — •' Alas ! " replied miss Baby, " some days ago I could have enjoyed with you this fine display of nature." ** But to-day, all these objects appear to me as through a mournful crape." " This beautiful sky, these verdant fields, flowers, fruits, rosy groves, which charm your eyes, make me tremble, everywhere there I see blood. — *' My God ! exclaimed the young officer, has some terrible misfortune happened to you?" — '* Alas I it is only a few hours ago that I was a witness to the most heart-rending scene that it is possible to imagine, and I cannot take away my thought from this eoul-breaking spectacle." ** But why should I make you uselessly sad by this fatal recital? Enjoy rather these hours which appear to you so delight- ful." <( (( <( ii it (( « t( K (( t( U