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MANITOBA MEMOKIES

LEAVES FROM MY LIFE IN THE PRAIRIE
PROVINCE, I868-I884. "

REV. GEORGE YOUNG, D.D.,

Founder of Methodist Missions in the Red River Settlement.

WITH INTRODUCTION BY

REV. ALEXANDER SUTHERLAND, D.D..

General Secretary of the Missionary Society of the Methodist Church.

ma^ lortraits anb llliistratioiis.

TORONTO:
WILLIAM BRIGGS,

WrSLEV BlILDINOfl.

AIONTRKAL : C. W. COAXES.

1897.

IlALiKAX ; S. F. HUESTIS.

c. a

Entered, occorrtintf to Ace of the Parliament of Canada, in the year one
thousand eight hundred and ninety -seven," by William Brioos, at
the Department of Agriculture.

INTRODUCTION.

Many a book has been published for which no good
reason could be assigned, but this book is not of that class.
Many manuscripts might have been consigned by publishers
to the waste-basket or the flames and the world have been
none the poorer ; but to have withheld these " Manitoba
Memories " from the public would have been a distinct) and
serious loss. Methodists would have lost some pages of
inspiring autobiography, as well as the story of the plant-
ing of Methodism in the great North-West ; Christians
who can i:se above the low level of denominational shib-
boleths would have lost the profit which comes from
studying the movements of other divisions of the Lord's
army than their own ; patriots would have lost the record
of some of the most stirring scenes in the founding of our
Western Empire ; and coming historians of both Church
and State would have lost a veritable mine of materials of
the highest value.

Only a single chapter is devoted to the author's auto-
biography, but the glimpses it affords of his early life serve
the good purpose of bringing the reader into sympathy

INTKODUCTION.

with the man and his work. From this starting point we
follow him with sympathetic interest through the valedic-
tory services at Toronto, before setting out with his com-
panions for their distant mission fields ; the long and toil-
some journey over the hundreds of miles of unsettled
prairie that intervened between St. Cloud and Fort Garry ;
the difficulties which beset his early ministry, growing in
part out of the sparseness of population, the long distances
between the settlements, the scarcity and cost of supplies,
and, last but not least, the bigotry of some who claimed
a monopoly of religious teaching, poorly qualified though
they might be to supply it. But all these were succes-
sively overcome, and the reader cannot fail to rejoice in
the success which ultimately crowned the labors of this
devoted missionary and those who succeeded him in the
work.

The part of these " Memories " which will most deeply
stir the hearts of loyal Canadians, irrespective of name or
party, is that which covers the revolt of the half-breeds
under Louis Riel in 1869. In this book we have a simple
narrative of the facts, recorded by an eye-witness whose
well-known reputation for integrity, veracity and upright-
ness precludes any suspicion of unfairness. The narrative
in its simplicity, directness, circumstantial details and
evident freedom from mere partizan bias, bears the stamp
of truthfulness upon its face, and the future historian will
find in it materials which he can use with unhesitating
confidence. The beginning of the troubles ; the persistent

iNTRODUCTION.

attempts of Iliel to fan the passions of the ignorant half-
breeds (which a word from the Hierarcliy could have
checked, had it been spoken) ; the seizure of Fort Garry
and the imprisonment of loyal Canadians ; the escape of
some and the recapture of part of them ; the climax of
crime and cruelty in 'he cold-blooded murder of Thomas
Scott ; the enforced exodus of the loyal element until order
was restored by the triumphal entry of the forces under
General Wolseley — all these occurrences are detailed with
simple but graphic power, and supply information of intense
interest and permanent value.

Following the stirring chapters on the Riel rebellion,
the author turns again to the peaceful scenes of missionary
labor and the planting of the Methodist Church. " The
First Manitoba Missionary Conference," when Drs. Pun-
shon and Wood, and John Macdonald, Esq., (all of whom
have since joined the "great majority") met the mission-
aries of the North-West, is sketched chiefly in the language
of contemporaneous records, and Dr. Lachlan Taylor's
journey through the " Great Lone Land " is given in the
words of the Doctor's own journal and report. The history
of the early educational movement is an interesting
chapter, and so is that which details two dissimilar mis-
sionary journeys in 1874 and 1875. The second of these
journeys was in the winter season, through an uninhabited
wilderness, and gave our author some experience of the
toils and hardships of missionaries in the far North. But
to follow the remaining chapters in detail would exceed

INTRODUCTION.

the limits properly assigned to an Introduction, and I must
refer the reader to the book itself for further information.
A work such as was done by George Young and his
associates in the North-West does not bulk very large in
the public eye at the time. Theirs was emphatically the
work of laying foundations, and this is a work which has
to be done quietly, and, for the most part, out of sight ; but
its importance to the superstructure to be built thereupon
cannot be overstated. That these men planned wisely and
built solidly, the results abundantly testify. Not often is
it given to pioneers to see the full fruit of their labors ; but
it is matter of profound satisfaction that the man who,
under God, planted the seeds of Methodism in the Prairie
Province, has lived to see and help to gather the won-
derful harvest that sprang from his sowing. Some men
have monuments in dead marble, reared long after they
have passed away ; George Young has his monument to-
day in the living Methodism of the great North-West.

A. SUTHERLAND.

Methodist Mission Rooms,
Toronto, May 10th, 1897.

PREFATORY.

The writer of this volume desires to intimate to its
readers that in its preparation and publication he has
simply yielded to the solicitations of many friends, as
well as to the request of the members of the Manitoba
and North-West Conference embodied in the following
resolution :

Moved by Rev. G. R. Turk, seconded by Rev. Dr.
Sparling—

"That we have read with pleasure the letters of the
Rev. George Young, D.D., which have recently appeared
in the Christian Guardian,

" Because of his intimate association with the early
history of this country. Dr. Young is specially qualified
to impart information "^'hich can be obtained from no
other source, and which will be of great interest and
importance to coming years. We, therefore, as a Con-
ference, express the hope that Dr. Young may see his
way clear to place the information contained in th-i
letters in permanent book form. Also, that a copy of
this resolution be forwarded to Dr. Youag by the Secre-
tary of this Conference."

PREFATORY.

My readers will suffer another prefatory remark :

I have given a more detailed account of some of the
events narrated than would be deemed advisable but for
the fact that hitherto they have not, to my knowledge,
appeared in print, or when they have were so inter-
blended witii the fictitious as to be deservedly discredited
by their readers. I will also add, that in consenting to
prepare this volume I was influenced somewhat by the
strong probability that it would be read by a goodly
number of our young people whose birth has taken place
since the times when these recorded events transpired,
and who may not so much as have heard of their occur-
rence.

To such, and all others who may consult these pages,
I herewith give the assurance that I have not in the
least drawn upon my imagination in their preparation,
but in all cases where the incidents given or the events
described have not been matters of personal experience
or observation, I have drawn my information from what
I deem reliable sources.

CONTENTS.

Chapter T.
An Autobiogmphical Sketch. (1821-1868)

Valedictory Services

Chapter II.

Chapter III.
The Forthgoing of the Missionary Party

Chapter IV.
Perplexities and Encouragements Interblending

Chapter V.
Tlie Arrival of an Efficient Helper

Troublous Times

Esciiping f(jr Life

Chapter VI.

Chapter VII.

Chapter VIII.
The Climax of Crime and Cruelty

Chapter IX.

Post-Mortem Indignities, etc.

An Enforced Exodus

Chaiter X.

PAGE
11

. 8a

. 100
. 117
. 131

. 148
. 163

CONTENTS.

Chapter XI.
A Notable Miliary Expedition

Chapter XII.
The Triumphal Entry, and What Cune of It .

Chapter XIII.
The Building of Our First Grace Church

Chapter XIV.
The Fenian Raid of 1871 — A Fizzle and a Farce

Chapter XV.
The First Manitoba Missionary Conference

PAGE

. 174

. 186

. 20()

. 212

. 230

Chapter XVI.

Dr. Lrfichlan Taylor's Wonderful Tour Among the Mis-
sions in the " Great Lone Ljind " .... 250

Chapter XVII.
Our Early Educational Movements in Manitoba 268

Chapter XVIII.
Two Missionary Journeys into the Interior . . 280

Chapter XIX.
My Last Hand-Shako with an Heroic Missionary 302

Chapter XX.
Returning to Ontario 317

Chapter XXI.
My Second Appointment to Mission Work in Manito})a . 328

Chapter XXII.

My Third Ajjpointmont to Mission Work in the North-

West ......... 343

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

CHAPTER I.

AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.
(1821-1868.)

Having been spared to pass the seventy-tifth mile-
stone in my life's pathway, and to enjoy fifty-seven
years of membership in the Methodist Church and
fifty-five years of preacher life, it would seem as if
the requests of many friends that I should give a
brief sketch of some, at least, of my many recollec-
tions of events and experiences of bygone years, were
not altogether unreasonable.

To the chapters following this much larger space
will be given, as it is judged that my Manitoba
memories will be regarded as of more general inter-
est than those by » liich they were preceded, and
which will therefore be more briefly recorded, and
even in many cases barely summarized.

The two births of whicli I have been the subject
occurred at the following dates : The first on the last
day of the year 1821, and the second in October, 184-0.
In the first I entere<l the life that now is ; by the

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

second I was introduced into " the household of faith,"
and became a cliild and an heir of God and a "joint-
heir with Christ." My ancestors, who were of the
old U. E. Loyalist stock, emigrated from the States
and settled in those parts of the County of Prince
Edward still known as East and West Lake respec-
tively, considerably more than a hundred years ago.
When but nineteen years of age my mother became
the subject of three experiences such as have come
to but few in so quick succession — a happy young
wife, a stricken widow, and an anxious mother — and
all during the months of the year 1821. My early
days were passed with my mother in the old home-
stead with her parents, who, being Methodists,
accounted it a privilege to open their home for
public worship and as a resting-place for the weary
itinerants of those pioneering times.

Some of my earliest recollections are of the names
and appearance of those zealous servants of the Most
High. This is especially the case with one whom I
can never forget — the Rev. Geo. Ferguson, an ex-
soldier bought out of the army by the Methodists — a
man small of stature, but large of heart, and all
aflame with love to God and zeal for His glory,
whose energetic and persistent efforts in pulpit and
prayer-meeting exercises were greatly blessed in the
conversion of multitudes of those early settlers. The
one incident in connection with this consecrated man's
ministry of which I have the most vivid recollection
was the placing of his hands on my head and earn-
estly beseeching God to bless and save " the little

AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.

fatherless boy." Will not "the effectual fervent
prayer of a righteous man avail much ^ " After
many years of devoted service in the itinerancy, and
when he was literally a " worn-out " preacher, the
name of this saintly man was placed on the list of
superannuates, where it remained until he was trans-
ferred to the ranks of the immortals.

Another distinct recollection I have of early child-
hood days was that of hearing in the class-room, to
which my mother led me, the earnest and frequent
singing of the hymn begiiming with " A charge to
keep I have," which was so deeply impressed on my
mind even then as to become ineffaceable. To this
day I rarely read or hear it announced in worship
without being reminded of those messages which it
bore to my mind in the times long gone by.

After many years of widowhood my mother became
the wife of Mr. Thomas Bowerman, whereupon we
removed to a new home, in a nmch more sparsely
settled part of the country, where for several years
iriy educational opportunities were both few in num-
ber and poor in (luality. Schools were distant,
teachers incompetent, text-books ill adapted, and op-
portunities for study few and far between, so that
my chances for getting an education were in striking
contrast with those now enjoyed by our highly fav-
ored youth, whether in city or country. Helping to
clear up land, to till soil difficult of tillage, ploughing,
harvesting, threshing, teaming, and caring for stock,
generally occupied my attention and called into exer-
cise my energies during the years most favorable for

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

close work in school or college. Very true, much of
this was in a degree educative, though it tended to
the training and developing of muscle rather than
mind. Still it was not entirely valueless in its bear-
ings upon my future, inasmuch as it brought me such
practical knowledge as subsequently availed me much,
by producing in me such a purpose of self-help as I
have been thankful for ever since.

I will relate just here what I have ever regarded
as a very remarkable instance of Divine interposition,
which occurred prior to my conversion. Our barn
was built on a hill side, the timbers on the upper side
resting on a foundation built but little above the
ground, while on the lower side they rested on posts
some twelve or fourteen feet in height, the basement
becoming a shelter for the stock in wintry weather,
while the upper stories contained grain, threshed or
unthreshed, hay, etc. Early one stormy morning,
while I was engaged in feeding the cattle in the
basement stables, a terrific wind storm, a veritable
tornado, struck the building, and by its marvellous
force crushed the entire structure to tlie earth, as
if had been but a child's playhouse. Hearing the
crash of the falling and breaking timbers, I was
instantly prompted to fall on my knees and pray.
Responding immediately to the prompting, the prayer
of the penitent publican was earnestly uttered, and,
I fully believe, instantly answered. In a moment all
was over, and stillness and darkness reigned where
I was, the broken timbers having so encompassed me
and the mows of hay and wheat so completely covered

AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.

3re
no

me that both light and sound were entirely excluded,
while I was as free from injury as before the crash
occurred.

My first thought was that I had been so buried
beneath the large quantities of hay and grain which
I knew had rested on the timbers above and must
have fallen along with them, that escape would be
impossible ; but a vigorous effort resulted in a few
minutes in making an opening through which light
streamed and out of which I rushed, without either
scratch or bruise. Then it was that I discovered that
in my kneeling to pray I had avoided the falling
beams and other timbers, now so piled upon each
other on either side and for about three feet above
my liead as to leave a space about a yard square —
the only space discernible w^here I could have escaped
being crushed to death. Had I been disobedient to
the prompting and remained standing, I must have
been instantly killed. Whence came that prompting
to kneel and pray — was it from within or from
above ? Was it of blind chance that those falling
timbers were so piled on each other and at such
distances as to ward off the supports of the mow of
hay and grain, and thus shield me completely from
any injury whatever ? Of the many who came that
day to view the ruins all seemed, as they took in the
situation, to regard my escape as miraculous, and
many unhesitatingly declared it to be so. How could
they do otherwise ? Has the God of Almightiness so
laid aside His ability or His right to so direct and
control and counterwork the great fprces of Nature,

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I I

which are but of His ordaining, as to involve the
miraculous ? I believe in God as Preserver as well
as Creator, and that it was He and He alone that
" redeemed my life from destruction."

When the rebellion of 1837, known as Mackenzie's
rebellion, broke out, and a call came for volunteers to
aid in its suppression, my loyalty led me to respond
to the call, and joining a company of dragoons under
the captaincy of E. D. S. Wilkins, Colonel Landon
commanding the regiment, I came under military
rule in the service of Queen and country. For the
purpose of guarding Presque Isle Harbor, and also, I
suppose, of dissuading any in that region having dis-
loyal proclivities from making demonstration in that
direction, we were stationed, with two or three com-
panies of infantry, in the village of Brighton, where
barracks were secured for the men and stables erected
for the horses. Here we remained — except when out
on duty in carrying despatches or patrolling — engag-
ing daily in parades for drill in horsemanship, sword
exercise, etc., etc., during our six months of service.
This also was, in a way, an educative process of some
value to me in after years when horse, saddle and
saddle-bags became so closely associated wHh me in
my circuit work. My soldier-life was no benefit to
me, however, religiously ; yet I am profoundly grate-
ful for the restraining grace which saved me from
being drawn into those excesses which proved the
ruin of some of my comrades in the service*

I now cr-^e to that more important event, my
second birtti, which took place in October, 1840,

AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.

following a season of deep conviction which the Holy
Spirit wrought in me through the use of means of
His own choosing. A young friend of mine was sud-
denly stricken out of life under circumstances which
seemingly afforded no opportunity for preparation for
the great change. At the burial, as we stood by the
open grave, an earnest, godly neighbor, an exhorter,
was moved to speal such words of warning as greatly
impressed all who heard them, and also proved the
means of awakening to many of the associates of the
deceased young man. My spiritual emancipation took
place not many days thence, in connection with a
series of special services in our newly-erected little
school-house, which soon became the birthplace of
many awakened souls. Almost immediately after
this blessed incoming of life and light and peace, I
was moved to seek, by testimony and exhortation, to
persuade others to become reconciled to God, so that
now nearly fifty-seven years have elapsed since I
began to exclaim, " Behold the Lamb of God." At
the close of the services referred to, with many
others, I united with the Church and received bap-
tism from the Rev. Lewis Warner, who gave me my
first quarterly ticket, which I still hold, and which
reads thus : " To do good and communicate forget not,
for with such sacrifices God is well pleased." That
Scripture, coming to me as it did, was as a message
from heaven. As the weeks passed by, I was
induced to take part in prayer and fellowship
meetings, and occasionally to give an exhortation

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

! I

I ;
' I

and *' lead the meeting." Deeply conscious of my
need of the requisite qualifications even for such
exercises, I applied myself to the study of such com-
mentaries, sermons and biographies, etc., as came
within my reach, frequently devoting thereto the
three or four hours which preceded the dawn. In
the meantime, though still engaged in farm work, I
assisted in revival services in adjacent neighborhoods,
as best I could. In order that I might have educa-
tional advantages such as I had not hitherto enjoyed,
I attended the Grammar School in Picton for a sea-
son, and was privileged in boarding at the parsonage
and receiving assistance such as I much needed from
our minister. In due course I received license as a
local preacher, and being recommended by the Quar-
terly Official Meeting in Picton to the District Meet-
ing, was thereby recommended to the Conference,
after due examination, to be received on trial as a
candidate for our ministry.

Sabbath, June 12th, 1842, was one of the many
red-letter days in my life which I shall ever remem-
ber. On that day for the first time it was my privi-
lege to enjoy the solemnities of a Conference Sabbath,
and to me the privilege was great beyond description.
First of all was the early and " old-time " love-feast,
which was followed by the ordination sermon by
President Green on " The Great Pentecostal Revival,"
and the ordination service. Then the three o'clock
service and an eloquent sermon by Rev. G. R. San-
derson on " Glorying in the cross of Christ only."
Then at seven o'clock another excellent and powerful

AX AUTOBIOGHAPHICAL SKETCH.

or a sea-

discourse from Rev. Dr. Ryerson, on " The excellency
of the knowledge of Christ," which helped to prepare
us for, as it was followed by, the holy communion.
No one will marvel when I state that these services
one and all left an impression on my mind wliich can
never be effaced. One, and only one, of the gifted
preachers of that Sabbath continues in the Church
militant at this date — I refer to Rev. Dr. Sanderson,
who was my superintendent in 1845-4G in the Ade-
laide Street charge, Toronto, and subsequently our
Editor and Book Steward, etc.

On the following day (Monday, June 18th) the
Conference in the old Picton chapel (as we called it)
closed, and my name having been read off for my
first pppointment, as assistant to my faithful and
zealous friend. Rev. S. C. Philp, sen., who is yet on
this side of the river, but " waiting for the boatman,"
I made haste to get my few belongings in the way of
an outfit for my future life as an itinerant into shape ;
to say good-bye to my friends, and to set out, with
horse, saddle, bridle and valise, a few clothes and a
few books, for the somewhat distant field of labor,
the old Oxford Circuit.

And now to summarize, as want of space will not
allow of anything more extended. I will mention the
fields of labor to which I have been assigned from
year to year. The positions I have been permitted
to occupy have been duly reported in the Annual
Minutes, and need no mention from me, further than
this simple statement. My circuits have been as
follows: Oxford, Chatham, London (as a supply),

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

Brantford, Toronto, St. Catharines, Gatineau and
Pull, Hamilton and Glanford, London (again as
a supply), Niagara and Drummondville, Belleville,
Montreal, Brantford, Kingston, Quebec, Toronto
(Richmond and Queen Street Churches). At this
point, however, I will diverge somewhat to make
special reference to the appointment which the

REV. HENRY WILKINSON.

Conference gave me in 1848 as the colleague of Rev.
Henry Wilkinson, Superintendent of the Hamilton
Circuit.

I had made the acquaintance of my now sainted
brother while he was President of Conference and
Chairman of Toronto District, and had a very high
estimate of his abilities, both as preacher and admin-
istrator, and also of his deep piety as well as his
uniform kindliness, for which, and other reasons, I was

■%■■'

AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.

greatly pleased with my appointment. Henry Wil-
kinson was a true out-and-out Methodist, and as a
minister a long way above mediocrity in spirituality,
zeal, industry, moral courage and faithfulness to his
charge, as well as in his preaching ability and
usefulness. It was a great blessing to me to be
associated so closely with him in circuit work, and to
enjoy a most friendly and free correspondence with
him through the years of his after life. After leaving
Hamilton, London, Toronto and Yonge Street Circuit
enjoyed hi& services, until, literally worn out with
hard work and the bearing of heavy responsibilities,
he rested from his labors in the little parsonage at
Eglinton, and went away to be " forever with the
Lord." His mortal remains, with those of his more
recently sainted wife, rest where so many of those
formerly associated with him in the ministry are
resting, in the crowded Necropolis in Toronto.

From the obituary which appeared in the Minutes
of Conference of 1863, I have gleaned the following
facts : In 1862 he was appointed to the North Yonge
Street Circuit, and entered upon his work with his
usual earnestness and activity. But he unhappily
overrated his physical ability, and was soon laid upon
what proved to be the bed of death. The second
Sabbath previous to his death he preached three
times, renewed tickets in two classes and conducted a
fellowship meeting, though unable all day to take any
food.

The Rev. James Elliott says : " I saw him on the
afternoon previous to his death. He remarked, ' I

■ I

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I«l

suppose it is all over with me now ; but it is all right.'
Being greatly exhausted, he said, ' Poor humanity ! '
And then, as if passing suddenly in thouglit from the
present to the glorious future, he exclaimed, ' Glorious
humanity ! ' He repeated with deep feeling the verse
of the hymfi ending wath,

" ' When Jesus doth His blood apply,
I glory in His sprinkled blood.'

He responded with great energy to my petitions in
prayer, and rejoiced with joy unspeakable. On the
following morning he finished his race in holy
triumph and passed to liis reward, in the fifty-eighth
year of his age and thirty-first of his ministry." He
rests from his labors, and his works do follow him.
Would that we had a hundred such men on the walls
of our Zion to-da3\

On the 13th of July, 1848, my marriage w^th the
wife of my youth, Miss Mary Alsy Holmes, daughter
of the late Rev. Ninian Holmes, took place, the Rev.
Samuel Fear oflSciating. Our first parsonage home
was a small frame building just erected by the circuit
on the plank road leading from Hamilton to Caledonia,
and in the neighborhood of the Glanford Chapel.
During our term on the Hamilton Circuit tlie field
was divided, Hamilton City being set oflf as a city
chaiige, wdiile tlie countr}', with several appointments
added, formed a circuit for two men. I Wfis left in
that charge, but, as it turned out, only for a few
months, when the Conference authorities removed
me to London to fill a vacancy occasioned by the

AN ArTOBIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.

appointment of the Rev. S. S. Nelles to the presi-
dency of Victoria Colle^ije, a position which he held
for thirty-seven years, discharging its manifold and
onerous duties most acceptably to the Church and
efficiently in the estimation of all who were most
deeply interested in the prosperity of the University.
At the time of his removal from London he was
but in his thirl year of ministerial labor, and the
twenty-seventh year of his age. The appointment to
such a responsibility of one so youthful was altogether
extraordinary, but neither the position of the College
nor the man thus appointed was of the ordinary.
I became accjuainted with him in his early home at
Mount Pleasant in 1844, while he was still a student
in the University of Middleton, and enjoyed his
friendship, and often his society, through the subse-
quent years of his ever- increasing popularity until he
rested from his labors. The testiuiony borne by the
Rev. Professor Reynar, in his beautiful and most
appropriate memorial address at the funeral, con-
tained these words, " He was a man of many books,
like John Wesley ; but he was at the same time like
Wesley — a man of one Book." On his death bed he
said to his wife, " I have studied nmch and read
many books, but there is no book like the Book, and
there is no name like Jesus." When he was near death
he sent back a message to the students as they were
about to asseiiibh^ for College prayers : "(iive the boys
my love and tiiank them for having been so thoughtful
and kind," and requested them also to sing in their
worship the first five verses of Cowper's familiar

1 I

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

hymn, " There is a fountain filled with blood." That
dying request indicated the rock foundation on which
his faith rested.

A few brief extracts from a letter from Principal
Douglas, which was read at a memorial service held
in Kingston, must bring to a close my remarks
regarding this my beloved and now sainted brother.
" As a preacher, Dr. Nelles was distinguished among
his peers. His ministry was not remarkable for
evangelistic fervor, but it was analytical, marked
by the discussion of philosophical principles, full of
scientific allusions, and occasionally graced by sin-
gular brilliance in illustrative power. It had special
charm for the thoughtful and cultivated amongst his
hearers. The Christian character of Dr. Nelles was
the crowning secret of his power. The transparent
rectitude, the unsullied purity, the single-mindedness
of the man inspired confidence wherever he was
known. His sudden departure came like a thunder-
clap out of a clear sky. The erd was worthy of
the man. Intellect, scholarship, and wide experience
of life, all bowed in sweet resignation to the Will
Divine, and with the restfulness of a little child he
reclined on the bosom of Jesus and went to ' the
rest that remaineth for the people of God.' Yet a little
while and we too shall hope to join him in singing
the new song through the glad forever. May this be
our beatitude when ' life's fitful dream is o'er,' and we
hear ' the bells of the Holy City and the chimes of
eternal peace.*" And that "little while" thus refer-
red to by Dr. Douglas in his eUxjuent testimony to

AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.

d." That
on which

Principal
vice held

remarks

brother,
id amon^
able for

marked
i, full of

by sin-
1 special
)ngst his
lies was
isparent
dedness
he was
lunder-

thy of

erience

k Will

ild he
o 'the
a little

ntring

his be

nd we

les of

rofer-

\y to

the ^ihs and great worth of his friend, came in due
course before seven full years had passed — Dr. Nelles
havino- rested from his weariness on the 23rd of
October, 1887, the anniversary of his birth sixty-four
years before; while Dr. Douglas entered upon the
everlasting rest of the saints for which he longed, on
the 10th of February, 1894. Who can doubt that
their re-union in " the Holy City " became a blessedly
realized fact at that date ? May it be ours, with all
their loved ones, to meet them again, and where there
shall be no darkness, no pain nor any such limita-
tions to holy service, as they both endured in this
life.

The death of my mother, who had suffered long
from that weakening, wasting and most depressing
disease, consumption, occurred during my second year
in Brantford. From an extended obituary prepared
h\ her minister, and which appeared in the Christian
Guardian soon after her death, I will make a few
such extracts as I may deem appropriate :

" Our departed sister was an Israelite indeed. Her
conversion to God took place under the ministry of
the Rev. Solomon Waldron. She was a woman of
superior judgment, a constant and unfailing friend, a
kind and affectionate mother, an obliging neighl)or,
and a liberal supporter of tlie cause of (Jod ; above
all, she was a devoted and exemplary Christian. Her
zeal, patience, resignation and enliglitened piety
rendered her a pattern worthy tlie imitation of all
her surviving friends. On visiting her soon after my
arrival on tlie circuit, I found her sinking rapi«lly,

V'll

IIIM
Ml

III! :

;:!

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MANITOBA JMEMORrES.

and speaking to her of her fn.

"" J'^^"- He is '■ sure fo , {• '™'*^"^ '"^ -"
days before her death IZZ tr?' '^'^ ^^-''1
^■nually. Among her las tr T^^"^ *° '•'^•'°i«« con-
these words, ' Ml s , t ir^'''"' ""-»<=- were
«f?« to her son, the L /-'"""'' """"^ ^'«r mes-
Brantford, ■ Tell him shoul JT'^' ''°""»"' "'^° »
gone, that I have go^^ '„ re f- /*:' """' *'" ^ ^m
f«ngher children tolX, ^,"' "'^" '^^ ^''^ '-«*-
« -e exhorted then, to S L T '""'''"^ ^"^''^^
the full assurance of a wl T •" ^'*^'''"' ^hus i„
ously received her dimisS of "T°'''""'^ ^^ejoy-
-thin the veil, on OctoTe °« , '•'■^ We and paise'd
seventh year," '" ^*-^' ^^CO, i„ her fift^,.

" 0. may I triumph so

^p^^'-S-findmylateatfoe
Lndermyfeetatlast."

•And now I have to
change in my position'^ wo,./''"':^'*^ "nanticipated
early choice. It can.e T T '" ""* Church of my

«- McDo..gai,.r::rt,;t„r"^ "'"•• '^"^«-

R«eky Mountain regions Ind '?'^'"•^«'°n•field in the

P'-ecedingyear,attendeTit'V ' ""'""'" '^^ the

7 Board, held in the t": Ttl'nK"' '"'^^ *''--

tn-nng representations of the ^ "'"' ^y ''■'«

-eathen an,l others occuU n ^T '"""^ "^ the

^eeply impressed and e,huTe7H ^°''' ''"'''""'• ^

AN ATltOBIOGRArHICAL SKETCH.

efforts to promote the evangelization of these be-
nighted thousands. He also made a strong appeal
for the establishment of a mission in the Red River
Settlement, now a part of Manitoba, which he felt sure
would ere long become the home of many of our
Canadian Church members and adherents, and where
there was already a population of ten or twelve
thousand, including natives and foreigners, many of
whom were insufficiently supplied with the ordinances
of religion. The result of his earnest ap^ I was that
the Board unanimously decided upon the opening of
the mission as soon as a suitable selection could be
made from among those who might volunteer for
that work, and a committee consisting of Revs. Ur.
Wood, Dr. Taylor and Geo. McDougall, and Mr. John
Macdonald, was appointed to make the selection
and report to the Board. As the weeks and months
passed by I had many opportunities of conversing
with Mr. McDougall in relation to the field and the
work to be undertaken, and also of consulting with
Dr. Wood, and was led, after gaining the consent of
my wife, to volunteer to go forth as the Church's
first missionary to the Red River country. My offer
was immediatly accepted by the committee, and as
soon as practicable the Conference Special Com-
mittee released me from my responsibility as Chair-
man of the Toronto District and superintendent of
the circuit, and appointed me to the far-away settle-
ment in question. Many of our friends in the various
stations we had occupied — Toronto, Quebec, Kingston,
and others — were much exercised in mind, in view of

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

;i||

should «eet witl. pru:,^."' ""^f ! they feared we
;e were scarcely e^uZT Jut^^'^'^'l^ -"h -
apposing the appointment' Th ^^'^ '^^''^^^^i from
«^te for our departurTand I P''^P'*'-''«°"« requi-
hat was perplexing and Je"'^ '"''''""' '"""h
harness, and waggons and ZT'"°''"'- ^or^es and
«We and a smallltfit fo' hon \"' '"°*""^ ^i*"
Purehased and put i„ shape fo1'''P'°»"' ^'"^ *° »>«
many friends were to beseen IZ '"'"'"P^'^^^ion. and

At length the last 9„M !L '' P*""'^^' ^'ith.
«- Richmond si wt rch"^^ 7 ministrations i„
how long came, and I ^rlZ ' "' "° °»« ^new
fron. Exodus, SSra ehap'Ieratd j'^H ''"*"-^ -™-
followed by a most solemn "„] /"■''■ ^'^'^^ ^-««
<=o-nm„nio„ service in wT, " ^'^'"^'''^ ''"ended
tieipated, an,ong whom w" .fT' "'"'«'-« P--
ofthe R-esbyterian Cln r A ^'" ^^- ^^misL,
^nce attended throughourwh JT^ ^'''^'°»« '°fl"-
d.eative of the Diwrapprr^ '/ """''^^''^ - -
During the week, a menS ""^ """J^rtaking.

valedictory servi es of Tpeck • ? '° '"''"^ "^ ««-
A further reference willTe T"'"' ''''' ^eW.
following '^'" he made in the chapter

CHAPTER 11.

VA LEDIC TOR V SER VICES.

The farewell missionary gatherings took place
on the 7th and 8th of May and were very largely
attended. In making a record of these I cannot do
better than to incorporate much of what was re-
ported in the Guardian and Globe of those dates.

From 'he ^^ Christian Guardian^' of Mat/ 13th, ISOS :

" On Thursday evening last a valedictory service
of extraordinary interest was held in the Richmond
Street Wesleyan Church, in connection with the de-
parture of the Revs. G. Young, E. R. Young and
P. Campbell, the missionary band appointed to labor
in the great North- West. By seven o'clock, the hour
appointed for commencing the service, the immense
building was crowded to its utmost capacity, present-
ing a most magnificent spectacle. Not only was the
Methodism of Toronto fully represented in the gath-
ering, but from adjoining districts east and west
large numbers came thronging in, affording good
evidence that the flame of missionary zeal was still
burning in the heart of Methodism as warmly as
when Wesley went forth in the spirit of the well-
known motto, ' The world is my parish.' There was
also a good representation of sister denominations,
affording pleasing evidence of kindly feeling, and of
deep interest in the missionary work.

\M:

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f i! '

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Ml i 1

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

I -

111 'f-

" On the platform were seated the Rev. James
Elliott, President of the Conference ; Rev. W. Morley
Punshon, M.A., Rev. Drs. Wood, Taylor, Green, Ryer-
son, JefFers, Cocker and Jennings ; the Revs. Geo.
Young, ^Geo. McDougall, E. R. Young, and P. Camp-
bell, the missionaries for the Red Rivei and Sas-
katchewan Districts; Revs. Wm. Pollard, R. Jones,
S. Rose, G. Cochran, R. Whiting, Wm. Young, J. G.
Manly, F. H. Marling, E. H. Dewart, John Carroll,
A. Sutherland, and John Macdonald, Esq., and A. W.
Lauder, Esq., M.P.P.

" The President took the chair at seven o'clock, and
opened the exercises by reading the '35th chapter of
Isaiah. He then gave out the 446th hymn, after
which the Rev. R. Jones led in prayer.

" The Chairman then called on the Rev. Dr. Wood,
General Superintendent of Missions, to addresss the
audience. The doctor said it was twenty-six years
since James Evans went to the great North- West,
and so faithfully did he labor that scarce any part of
the vast territory could now be found where that
devoted missionary had not preached the Gospel.
Mr. Evans was well-known as the inventor of the
' syllabic characters,' into which the. Word of God had
since been translated, and which was much better
adapted to the Indian tribes than the ordinary
Roman characters. Through the labors of Mr. Evans,
and others who had succeeded him, thousands in that
far-otf region had been brought to Christ. Evans
and Rundle were the first missionary laborers in the
Hudson Bay Territory. Rundle's health having
failed, he was compelled to leave the work ; but it
should be recorded as a remarkable evidence of the
power of Divine grace, that the Stoney Indians,
among whom he (Mr. R.) had labored, retained their
knowledge of Divine truth for seven years, during
which time they were without a missionary. Last

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

November the Missionary Committee had resolved to
send a missionary to Red River, and another to the
Black feet Indians, the most warlike and savage tribe
on the great plains, and one to Norway House, to
supply the place of the Rev. C. Stringfellow, who
returns to Canada. He would refer to but one point
more. The authorities of the Church might have
appointed any one of our six hundred ministers to
this field, but they preferred to wait, and watch the
leadings of Providence in the selection of men. Those
upon whom the selection has fallen had the entire
confidence of the Missionary Committee.

" The Rev. E. R. Young was then called upon. He
said there were times when it was impossible to give
utterance to all the feelingt of the heart, and this was
one of them. He felt this movement was of-the Lord,
and he hoped, by God's blessing, to do some good. He
would urge upon all, * pray for us.' It was hard to
say good-bye, but he was sure God would more than
make up what they might sacrifice for Him. He was
su^'e of one thing, — those who had been appointed to
this work would not talk annexation. He would again
ask the prayers of God's people that they might be
made a blessing.

"The Rev. P. Campbell was next introduced. It
was thirteen years since he obtained salvation. It had
been previously impressed upon his mind that if he
obtained salvation he would have to preach the Gospel.
He was not willing to do this ; but the impression
returned again and again that he could not obtain
salvation until he was willing to go anywhere at
God's command. When he yielded the point he found
salvation. Eleven years ago he was called into the
work of the ministry, and God had blessed him with
some success. When he heard Brother McDougall's
statements at Whitby last year, he felt his desire to
engage in the missionary work revive, and he resolved,

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

should the Church appoint him, he would go. He had
no desire but to preach Christ. He expected difficul-
ties, but he had counted the cost, and trusted in the
promises. He felt it hard to bid ^ood-bye to parents
and friends, but he was cheered by the prospect of
meeting them again in a brighter and hdtppier world.
He felt that God's presence would compensate for the
breaking up of social ties. He prayed God for a
prosperous journey, and that he might be a useful
minister of Jesus.

" The Chairman gave out the hymn commencing,
* On all the earth thy Spirit shower,' which was sung.

" The Rev. George Young was then called upon, and
was received with applause. He said it was with
great difficulty he had brought himself to say even a
few words. In 1840 he gave his heart to Christ, and
had never regretted the step. Some years after he was
led to give himself to the work of the ministry, and he
had never regretted that step. A few weeks ago he
yielded to the request of the Church to enter upon
this missionary work, and since that decision he had
not experienced one moment's regret. His future was
in God's hands. He could not tell how long he might
labor in the mission field ; but he had consecrated
himself to God, body and soul, and by God's grace
he would keep the offering upon the altar. He
expected the Divine presence all through their
prospective journey. He had a request or two to
make. They (the missionaries) wanted the prayers
of their Christian friends. He hoped the Missionary
Committee would not think them slow if they did
not report progress every few weeks, nor extravagant
if the figures looked somewhat formidable. He
hoped by God's blessing to return in the course of
years, and report in person what the Lord had
done for them.

" Rev. G. McDougall was the next speaker. He did
3

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

not feel disposed to ask sympathy on account of pri-
vations in missionary work ; he considered it the
highest honor that could be conferred upon him. He
could not help thinking of the altered circumstances
of his brethren. In a few weeks Brother Young
would be gathering sticks for his camp-fire ; but then
he would be in the apostolic succession. (Laughter
and applause.) Brother E. R. Young and Brother
Campbell would soon be setting their nets for fish
at their missions, and they would therefore be in the
apostolic succession too. (Laughter and cheers.) The
last time he stood in this church, Dr. Stinson and
James Spencer were present, — now they were both
gone. They (the missionaries) had a long and
dangerous journey before them, but God would take
care of them. He hoped they would soon have to ask
for more men for that field.

" John Macdonald, Esq., was then called upon, and
warmly greeted. He said this was an evening never
to be forgotten. If we enjoyed advantages not in-
ferior to those enjoyed in any part of the world, was
it too much to say we were indebted for them to
those who in early years pret^ched to us the Gospel
of Christ ? We could not conft * i greater boon upon
that interesting portion of our Dominion, the North-
West, than by sending these men to lay the founda-
tion of Christian institutions. Some might think
we were adding to our financial burdens. He
thought it would lessen them, for it would stir up
the missionary spirit, and increase the liberality of
our people. Mr. Macdonald here referred to several
liberal offers which had already been made by friends
in different parts of the country. He could not sit
down without expressing the gratification he felt in
meeting on the platform an honored minister of the
parent body. (Applause.) We would go on in our
great work trusting in the Lord,

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

" A. W. Lauder, Esq., M.P.P., was then introduced,
and received with cheers. He said he was proud to
stand among so many honored men, and lift his voice
on behalf of the noble brethren who were going out
on this mission work. He spoke but the voice of the
vast audience when he said that they parted with
their pastor (Rev. G. Young) with exceeding regret.
He was also proud to welcome among them, in the
name of 4he laity of Toronto, the ablest advocate of
missionary work in the world, the Rev. W. M. Pun-
shon. (Applause )

" The Rev. James Caughey was introduced, and
received with repeated cheers. He felt as if he was
standing in the sunshine of the congregation. He
wished he had a text of some kind to hang a speech
upon ; but when he looked at the clock, he felt there
was scarce time even for what some called 'a nice
little speech.' The missionary cause was a good
cause ; but he did not say that a man should give all
he had to it, nor even that he should give a tenth,
but he would wish to take a man to the cross, bid
him look upon the dying Son of God, and then say to
him, * How much owest thou unto thy Lord ? ' ' Pay
that thou owest.' He would say to the missionaries
that there were thousands in Canada who would sus-
tain them by liberal contributions and by earnest
prayer.

" The 700th hymn was then sung.

" The Chairman had been largely anticipated in the
work he was to perform. The duty he felt to be a
pri\ilege, the duty of officially introducing the Rev.
W. M. Punshon, M.A. The announcement was re-
ceived with hearty applause.

" Rev. W. Morley Punshon was introduced in flat-
tering terms by the Chairman, and received with
applause. After a few words, expressive of his
pleasure in meeting his audience, he compared his

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

position to that of the Irishman who applied for a
situation and was asked for his character. He re-
plied tliat he left it at home, because he thought he
would be better without it ! He would very much
rather have been allowed to make his own way than
to have been introduced in such flattering terms by
certain of the gentlemen who had preceded him. He
had been thinking since entering the meeting of his
early experience, his first venture to put his ioot on a
missionary platform. In the early part of his minis-
try he attended a meeting at which the speakers suc-
cessively entertained their audience with a list of the
talents with which they thought God had blessed
them. They did so mainly as one of those conven-
ient apologies that enable a man to glide easily into
a speech. One said that God had not blessed him
with a silvery tongue, but he had a talent for singing,
and he had cultivated that. Another talent was
instructing children in the Sunday School, and it
was his special vocation to bring them when young
to the fold of Jesus. Another, who happened to be an
Irishman, said while his talent had not shown itself
he thought that in the original distribution he could
not have been left out, that there must surely have
been a talent but it was difficult for him to find out
what it was. He had, however, found out that his
talent was to make apologies ; and it so happened that
tlie speaker had the last speech to make, and as all
who preceded him had been talented brethren, and as
one might as well be out of the world as out of the
fashion, he found himself possessed of a talent to be
happy at a missionary meeting, and rejoiced now that
sometliiiig of the old feeling came over him. At the
ring of the true metal there was the same subtle elec-
tric sympathy in (^aiiada as in England. Thinking of
this and rejoicing in th«^ catholic and kindly feelings
evinced, his contemplations took a higher turn. But

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

id for a
He re-
u^ht he
y much
ly than
jrms by
m. He
g of his
)ot on a
J minis-
Brs suc-
t of the
blessed
3onven-
ily into
ed him
nnging.
nt was
and it
younir

be an
n itself

could
y have
nd out
lat his

1 that

as all
and as
of the
t to be
w that
A.t the
G elee-
mo^ of
lolings
But

he felt somewhat diffident from the nature of the
work he had to do. He could make a missionary
speech, and even a valedictorj^^ address, but could not
combine them. In the early days of missionary
work there was the excitement of novelty, of oppo-
sition, of romance ; but we must now try to get it on
the broad foundation of Christian principle. There
were peculiar difficulties in the way of missionary
work. It was difficult to dislodge a previously con-
ceived opinion ; but our missionaries went not to war
against wrong opinions, but against lusts and sins —
not merely to subdue a man, a neighborhood, but
a world. The separation of the world into different
nations, governments and languages, interposed
another difficulty. There were dangers also to be
encountered. There was enmity in every human
heart. There were also the divisions and heresies of
the Church itself ; and a spirit of indifference where
there should be ardor. Looking at all these things,
it was not easy to convert the world. Mr. Punshon
then proceeded to speak of the principles on which
the work must be based. Mean or selfish motives
could not long sustain a man in this work — principle
alone could do it. If there be nothing but imagina-
tion to sustain, the romance will soon be rubbed off!
We must have faith, and then imagination will not
lose its sense of duty. If those who go forth are sus-
tained by love, then they will be successful indeed.
He would remind those who were going forth that
they must work \v patient hope. We were an im-
patient people in reference to missionary success ; but
we must remember sowing and reaping were two dif-
ferent things. One might go fortli only with the
seed-basket ; Imt a time was coming when both sower
and reaper would rejoice together. The S(»v;er goes
alone, and he needs to encourage liimself v/ith the
word, 'be patient, therefore, brethren,' God works

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

by means, and He won't do anything we can do. We
can't raise Lazarus from the dead, but we can roll
away the stone before, and unwind the grave-clothes
after the resurrection. Every member of the Church
had a part to do in this work, and he would conjure
them by the constraining 3ve of Christ to present
their bodies a living sacrifice. We wanted all en-
gaged in this work, the young with their sympathies,
men in their prime with their energy, the aged with
their wisdom — we want them all. Surely not one
would refuse to n^ake the consecration. Mr. Punshon
resumed his seat aiyid loud applause.

" Dr. Taylor then called for the collection, and in
his own inimitable way pressed the claims of the
work, — humor, pathos, and earnest appeal following
each other in rapid succession. The congregation
cheerfully responded, sending up a collection of about
$180.00. On one of the plates w^as a piece of paper,
which, on being opened, was found to contain a
twenty-dollar gold piece, and the following words :
* For the mission to the Blackfeet Indians, from a
great debtor to grace. Alleluia ! '

" The hymn beginning, ' Joined in one spirit to
our Head,' was then sung, the Rev. S. Rose pro-
nounced the benediction, and thus clot>cd one of the
most interesting meetings ever held in Toronto."

A FAREWELL BREAKFAST.

From the " Globe " .•

*' This morning the missionaries to Red River and
the Saskatchewan were entertained at a farewell
breakfast in the basement of the Richmond Street
Methodist Church. The attendance was very large,
being nearly sufficient to till the church comfortably.
The breakfast was served in t'ne basement and was

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

lo. We
ian roll
-clothes
Church
conjure
present
all en-
pathies,
3(1 with
lot one
unshon

and in
of the
lowing
egation
t' about
paper,
[tain a
vvords :
rom a

irit to
pro-
of the

r and
ewell
Itreet
arge,
ably,
was

an excellent repast considering the cir'^umstances
undex which it was prepared. The six large tables
running from one end of the room to the other were
not sufficient to accommodate those present all at
once, and they were therefore spread a second time.
The room was slightly decorated for the occasion.
Along the south end were the words " Missionaries to
the Red River and Saskatchewan regions," while the
north end was decorated with the British flag. The
missionaries were seated at a cross table at the south
end. After singing a hymn, grace was said, and the
good things were then paid particular attention to.

" The Missionaries.

" The gentlemen in whose honor the breakfast was
given, and who are about starting to the North- West
to engage in the missionary enterprise, are four in
number. The following are their names : The Rev.
Geo. Young, Toronto ; Rev. E. R. Young, Hamilton ;
Rev. Peter Campbell, Rockwood ; Rev. George
McDougall. The latter has for many years been
engaged in Christianizing the savages of the North-
West, and came down here recently for the purpose
of procuring assistance. He has been successful in
inducing those able ministers to return with him.
The tliree gentlemen will take their wives with them.
The Rev. George Young will officiate among the
whites in the Red River Settlement, while the other
three will be engaged among the savages 'farther
west and north. They go by the American route,
through the city of St. Paul, and start on Tuesday
next. It will take them several weeks to reach their
destination. Mr. McDougall and Mr. Cann)bell will

fo 1,000 miles beyond Red River, away to the Rocky
lountain region, and will still be in British territory.
This shows what a vast territory we have away in
the centre of the continent.

i i'

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

"Meeting in tJie Clairch.

" After breakfast had been attended to, the congre-
gation assembled in the church, which they comfort-
ably filled. On the platform we noticed the Revs.
W. Morley Punshon, M.A., Dr. Wood, Dr. Ryerson,
Dr. Jennings, Dr. Willis, Dr. Taylor, Bishop Richard-
son, Dr. Caldicott, Mr. Reid, F. H. Marling, Dr. Green,
Mr. Manly, Mr. Rose, Mr. Wallace, Mr. Blackstock,
Mr. Baker, Mr. McDougall, Mr. G. Young, Mr. E. R.
Young, Mr. Gregg, Mr. Campbell, Mr. Topp, Mr.
Byrne, Join Yc .mg, John Macdonald, Esq., William
Gibbs, Esq., I^ev. Wm. Stephenson, Mr. Beatty, M.P.,
and Revs. J\i.. McClure, Dr. Cochran, James Elliott,
and others.

" The chair was occupied by Mr. John Macdonald,
Treasurer of the Missionary Society. The proceed-
ings were commenced with singing and prayer.

" Rev. Mr. Elliott said that it afforded hiia much
pleasure to introduce Mr. John Macdonald, the Treas-
urer of the Society, who would now take the chair.

" Mr. Macdonald, on taking the chair, said that on
many occasions it had been his privilege to be present
at meetings in this church, but he had never more
pleasure than on the present occasion. Last night
they had met to bid farewell and say 'good-bye' to
those who were going to a far distant land. These
missionaries were going to Red River, to Norway
House, to Woodville, to the wild, warlike and un-
tamable Blackfeet, and in their mission to that
country they would complete the chain of missionary
enterprise extending from continent to continent,
and when the men have gone friends will remember
that our missionaries have their Bibles in their hands
to preach the Gospel of Christ — to extend the field of
missionary enterprise from the Atlantic to the Pacific
Ocean. It might be asked, Why do we send them to

|i'way

un-

that

lary

lent,

Inber

mds

Id of

Icific

11 to

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

the Red River, where there were already those
missionaries of the Presbyterian and Episcopal
churches ? Our friends, however, go with a catholic
spirit to work and heartily co-operate with their
fellow-laborers in the west. The brethren know well
from their knowledge of Brother Young that what he
is to do he will do well. Then Brother McDougall
was at any rate more than half an Indian and was
never so happy as when he was among the savage
tribes, and stood beside the bedside of the Crees or
Ojibeways when he has seen them pass from beds
of sickness to beds of eternal glory. As for Brother
Campbell, of Rama, he goes warm-hearted to the
work. Brother Young has been of much use in
Hamilton, which proves a sure guarantee that he will
do his work well. Brother McDougall's son, who
goes to the Blackfeet, is more than all the others
with his life in his hand — that tribe being one of the
most savage. The speaker would not detain the
meeting, but beg to introduce Rev. Egerton Ryerson.
" Dr. Ryerson, being called on, said that the present
opportunity took his thoughts back to the time when
forty-two years ago he received orders to go out to
the Indians. It was the brightest year of his labor
in a comparatively chequered life when he slept in
the Indian tents, with only a mat and a blanket
between himself and the ground ; when in the early
morn he took the Indians out four by four and taught
them how to plough, or to build fences, prepare their
gardens or repair their implements, or when he had
to go from house to house teaching the women how
to wash their clothes — (laughter) — and sweep their
houses, telling that the one who did it best was the
one with whom he would dine that day. The speaker
was one who had drawn up the tirst report of the
Canadian Missionary Society, and he could assure
the audience that it took just as much trouble and

1 fi

MilNITOBA MEMORIES.

labor to raise S500 then as it does to raise $62,000
now. He wished the missionaries God speed, health
and (strength, and although they might not be with
them at the sowing, still they hoped to be with them
at the reaping."

Appropriate addresses were also given by the
following ministers and laymen : Rev. Drs. Willis,
Jennings, Caldicott and Cocker, Rev. Messrs. Manly
and Stephenson, and Messrs. Gibbs and Beatty.

" The Rev. W. Morley Punshon was then called on,
and stated that he was not accustomed to speak
under such difficulties as then surrounded him. To
be the centre of a battery of eyes on either side
of the platform, and in front of the platform,
was a Canadian novelty which he never had the
opportunity of becoming acquainted with, and which
needed a good deal of nerve to overcome. On this
occasion he felt disposed not to speak, but to talk, and
those of the audience who knew the force of the
synonym would see that there is a difference in what
appeared at first sight to be the same. This he appre-
hended was a social meeting, and one in which they
could say anything that suggested itself, and one in
which it was not necessary or even preferable to put
in the newspapers. Expressing his pleasure at the
unanimity displayed in the presence on the platform
of ministers of different denominations, he also rejoiced
in the familiar character of the meeting. They had,
he continued, representatives from he did not know
how many denominations, all animated by one spirit
and expressing the same hearty good wishes for
the success of the cause, and blessings on the men
who are to carry the Gospel to the far west. Indeed
it was a very encouraging indication of the spirit
of Christian principle, and the working of the leaven

i'l

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

$62,000
, health
be with
<h them

by the
Willis,
Manly

lied on,
speak
m. To
jr side
itform,
ad the
which
)n this
Ik, and
)f the
I what
ippre-
they
•ne in
)o put
,t the
form
oiced
had,
fnow
spirit
for
men
Ideed
)irit
Lven

that marks the increasing etlbrts for Christian union,
and he did not know why it should be otherwise. The
Bible enjoins that we are to endeavor to intensely
labor to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of
peace. Constituted as human society was, to expect
a union of all would be visionary, and with deference
to those who were of orreater ao-e than himself, he
would say it was undesirable. Comparison with
others has sometimes been product" >' of important
results, and the Church that may be leaning back
listlessly and lazily will rise from its lethargy when
stimulated by more active Christian etibrt. To illus-
trate this, he proceeded to define the term ' beauty,'
which was an harmonious combination of varieties.
There was no beauty in the simple element. The
prismatic varieties fascinate and charm'. One banner
in an army would create but little attention ; it is
the host of streamers. Now the Church sliould be
the army of banners — should be the iris illuminating
the globe with its beauty. The light should stream
from her windows, scattered as the rays, yet one as
the sun. The tide of our benevolence should flow
onward, distinct as billows yet one as the sea. He
was glad, moreover, that this greater unity was
brought about by greater effort. There was nothing
better calculated to bring Christians together, and it
is a well understood axiom that when men are en-
gaged in a great work they have no time for (juar-
reling. Those who are engaged in spreading the
work of the Lord have a breadth of ideas which
tramples on the more insignificant feelings which are
the engendering of strifes among men. At the same
time, while he was a believer in the most extensive
catholic unity, he liked his own fireside best. He is
a churl who cannot warm himself at any other
hearthstone but his own, but he is only half a uian
who does not love his own firesiae best. (Cheers.)

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

1-;

; i

f '■

The man who is a general lover, without any one
particular object, is one that should not be trusted —
except Dr. Taylor. (Laughter.) But after all who
were they that supported the great charities ? Not
the men who have no homes, not the loungers at the
cafe or club, but the men who have learned from the
preciousness of their own family retreats the worth of
such blessings, so wherever he saw a man without a
spiritual home he thought of him as a spiritual Ish-
maelite, his hand against every man and every man's
hand against him. He did not think there was any-
thing wrong in denominationalism as long as there
was Christian charity at the root. He believed he
could work best with the organization that reflected
his own spiritual sympathies, and while thinking so
he could shake the brethren of other Churches by the
hand and bid them God-speed in the great work.

" We can appeciate the excellences of the great
Republic, but sing with patriotic ardor * God save
the Queen ' notwithstanding. The speaker then pro-
ceeded to discuss their missionary work, remarking :
Then as to this Methodist Missionary Society, Dr.
Newton used to tell that on one occasion a gentleman
met him and said he believed he was going to have a
great missionary ' do ' at his church to-night. He
said we have all along had a great missionary ' do,'
and while discoursing as he had, the practical should
not be forgotten. His figures were not all figures of
speech. He was told there was a vast amount of
debt on this missionary organization and that there
were some awful things in the shape of bank dis-
counts and advances by the Treasurer, so that if they
really meant to prosecute this work, Fomething special
must be done. There must be a m .ssionary ' do ' as
well as a missionary ' say.' He would, however, leave
this with them while he reminded them of what duty
brought them together. Their friend Mr. McDougall

i'^

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

save

^'■

did not need much of their sympathies, because he
was going home. But they were sending out six
missionaries. The speaker, hesitating, said — Yes,
six; their wives go with them. If they were Mora-
vian, they would count two ; but with us the honored
wives claimed the sympathy of all, as well as their
husbands. They were really sending out six mission-
aries, and these had to be maintained. These are
women who hazard their lives as well as the men —
women who make our manhood cheap, because they
are privileged to go forth without a murmur to the
sustentation of those whose name they bear ; and let
us, he said, not f Tget to pray for^the wives, as well as
the men, that they, with frailer organizations, though
perhaps a well-knit network of nerves — for there is
not so much ot the robust muscular strength — may
be preserved for the trial. They are as brave, as well
as firm and fervent, and trust in Christ, and are
entirely devoted to the Great Master and His work.
Do not, he continued, forget them in your prayers
and their wants in connection with the refinements of
life. The cheese-paring economy that would abridge
one cent of the efforts of the missionary, is a dishonor
to the Gospel of Christ. They go out with their
lives in their hands and offer up their ease, social
status, and all the other comforts of the well-regulated
Christian city home ; they go out as the heralds. See
to it, he added, that tlieir families have power to
surround themselves with the things that will give
them a memory of your interest in them.

*' Their friends, the missionaries, had had condo-
lence and congratulation. They needed both. It
struck him that if any of them should feel any mis-
givings as to their safety, they might, perliaps, get a
crumb of comfort from an interpretation of Scripture
to which their attention liad not befoi'o been directed.
They remembered that the disciples were in two

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

! '■',;!

I i;

•

, I

i ■

storms in the Lake of Gennesaret. They were in two
storms, the last greater than the first. The first was
in the day time, the second in the deep, dark, inhos-
pitable night. In the first, the wind was in their
favor and they were near where they wanted to be.
In the first storm, above all, Jesus was in the ship.
But in the last Jesus was not there. The storm was
contrary and driving them on the rocks ; but they
did n >t know that He was praying for them on the
shore all the while. He saw them toiling against the
wind, He came to them, and that angry sea as soon as
it felt His footstep subsided like a slumbering child.
He got into the ship and took the source of their
terror away before He rebuked them, and then said,
' Why do ye fear, O ye of little faith ? ' Why did
He say that ? Because they were not entirely alone
in the storm. You will see, Mr. Punshon said, that
before they got into the boat Jesus said, * Let us go
over to the other side.' And depend upon it, if God
says to anybody ' Go over to the other side,* He
never lets them sink in the middle. That thought
had comforted him very much, and he would like it
to comfort them. By His grace keeping them they
will more than conquer. Sometimes, he added, they
were paid to go over. They remembered the young
man who was privileged to wait on the prophet. He
said, ' Alas, Master, what shall we do ? ' The answer
was, * Lord, open his eyes' ; and the moment they were
opened he saw that round about him were chariots
of fire. Some one had remarked the great difference
between contributions now and when they first began,
and in taking up this point the speaker referred to
the death of Mr. Evans, and his meeting with Mr.
Rundle, another missionary. He also knew Bishop
Anderson, of Rupert's Land, who now occupied a
living adjoining the speaker's own charge. He was
not so communicative as when in the North-West.

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

lop
a

jst.

Snake-fences of this country, he said, were somewhat
easier to be got over than the briar fence at home,
and interchange of courtesies were not now so com-
mon. Returning to the missionary operations of the
Church, he noticed that the first contribution to the
support of a missionary of the body was made in the
British Methodist Conference. They taxed them-
selves, and the collection was £52. Two ministers
were despatched to a field of labor by this assistance,
but when the Conference sent them away they
thought they were altogether done with them. They
afterwards went to visit their lay friends in what is
now one of the best fields for missionary contribu-
tions. After the meeting, the laymen's contribution
was ten shillings. Times, he added, had changed.
Do not let us, he said in conclusion, be the pot;r
pensioners on the memory of the past — the spend-
thrifts of the bounty of the present. Labor, and
pray, and give — this is the trinity of man's duty — so
that this great work may be carried on even to the
uttermost parts of the earth.

•' The Rev. Dr. Taylor intimated that the collection
of last evening amounted to $1 68.33. Further collec-
tions to the amount of $18.00 were made, and the
assembly dispersed after singing tb*^ doxology."

An interesting item — to me at least — not referred
to in these reports, was the presentation to myself and
famil}'' of a purse well 'Uled with gold, and also two
beautiful testimonial addresses, one from the officiary
of the church and the other from the young men.
As I feel sure that my readers will be much interested
in these addresses, I will incorporate them along with
the reports already given of the valedictory addresses,

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

FROM THE QUARTERLY OFFICIAL BOARD.

1 n
i '■■

I ;{ 1 :

i ' !

*' To the Reverend George Young, Wesleyan Methodist
Minister, Superintendent of the Toronto City West
Circuit :

"Rkverend and Dear Sir, — Prompted by the
warm friendship which we entertain for you, we em-
brace tha occasion of your departure from amongst
us as a missionary to the North- West as a fitting
time to address you in this formal manner, and to
give a permanent and tangible expression to feelings
prompted by the very high place which you have in
our affections as a Christian minister.

" We are not unmindful that your removal to a
new field of labor will eventually be looked upon as
marking a distinct era in the history of Methodism
in British North America ; and while we are willing
to cheerfully submit to the authorities of the Church,
and to recognize the guiding hand of a wise Provi-
dence in this missionary movement, we very much
regret your departure from the circuit, and we shall
cherish with more than ordinary care the remem-
brance of your kind, zealous and faithful labors,

" You have labored amongst us affectionately and
faithfully in the cause of your heavenly Master. We
rejoice to know that many have been greatly blessed
and built up in the service of God through the instru-
mentality of your instructions and kind admonitions.

" Many of us, as parents and as the friends of the
rising generation, hare to thank you most heartily
for the affectionate and painstaking manner in which
you have labored to bring the young men of our
congregations under the blessed influence of the
Gospel and the practical relationships of a religious
life. The work of God in all its departments has

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

and
We
leased
Istru-
)ions.
the
|rtily
hich
our
the
rious
has

been much benefited by your labor and untiring
oversight since your appointment to the position you
have held amongst us during the last two years.

" Many Christian friends throughout the length
and breadth of the Dominion will join heartily with
us in wishing you great happiness and in praying
that the great Head of the Church may grant you
every needful blessing in the discharge of the oner-
ous duties which must necessarily devolve upon you
in the ' Far West.'

" The noble work of preaching the Gospel to the
inhabitants of those almost inaccessible and far-off
regions, and the organization and perfecting of a
more permanent system of missionary operations in
the North- West, has been given to you. We shall
rejoice at your success, and no doubt many of us will
hereafter read with deeper interest the missionary
intelligence from Red River and Saskatchewan, seeing
that one who was loved as a pastor and esteemed as
an affectionate friend, labors and toils there — far
away from many of the valued refinements and en-
dearments of Christian society.

" Be assured that you have to accompany you to
Red River our warmest friendship, and you shall have
our most earnest prayers — supplemented, no doubt,
by those of hundreds of as equally sincere friends in
other places — that God in His great mercy and good-
ness would bless abundantly to yourself and family
this remarkable period in your personal history.

" We desire, dear sir, through the medium of this
address, to communicate to your kind and faithful
partner in life our earnest and wannest greetings,
and we would especially desire to speak cheering
words to her, knowing the self-denial to be exercised
on her part, and feeling as we do the certainty that
she will have to undergo trials and privations of a
kind to wdiich she has hitherto been unaccustomed.

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I I

" We hope that you will accept these tokens of
our affection and esteem which accompany this ad-
dress as an indication of the acceptability of your
labors in God's cause amongst us, and we trust they
may serve to remind you of your Methodist friends
in Toronto, when separated from them by hundreds
of miles of broad lake and expanding prairie.

" On behalt of the hundreds of friends you leave
behind you, we wish you God-speed and pray that
your steps may be ever under the direction and
guidance of our Omni.^cient and Infinite Father.

" We remain, honored and dear sir,

" Yours most trul}/ ,

" C.;A. Dredge,
Henry Graham,
James Rooney,
Adam Miller,
A. W. Lauder,
James B. Marshall,
Joseph Howson, M.D.,

C. S. Hayman,
E. S. Barrick,

D. Thurston (U. S. Cotisul),

Members of Committee.

" Jno. C. Charlesworth,

Chairman of Committee.

" Henry E. Clark,

Secretary and Treasurer.

"George Cochran,

Associate Minister,
"Toronto, May 8th, ISGcS."

VALEDICTORY SERVICES.

)kens of
this ad-
of your
isfc they
friends
undreds

)u leave
•ay that
on and

itfee.

\ttee.

'er.

tfr.

I cannot repress a feeling of sadness as, in reading
over the names attached to the foregoing address, I
reflect that only four of these kind friends are now

livuig.

FROM THE YOUN(; MEN.

" To the Rfv. Geonie Young :

"Reverend and Dear Sir, — On behalf of the
YOUNG MEN in connection with the congregation of
the Richmond Street Wesleyan Church,

" We take the present as a fitting opportunity of
conveying to you an expression of the high appre-
ciation in which we, in common with the rest of the
attendants upon your ministry, have held your faith-
ful services as a preacher of the Gospel, and as one
who, with untiring zeal and fidelity, and uniform
Christian kindness, has exercised the pastoral care
[)ertaining to your office.

" Upon this the occasion of your removal from our
midst to another and distant fi(;ld of labor, we would
fail in justice to our own feelings did we not give
you an earnest assurance of the heartfelt and sincere
regret with which we contemplate your departure.
At the same time, permit us to say that we fully
appreciate the truly missionary spirit actuating you
in the readiness with which you have yielded to the
call of duty, and the intimations of Divine Providence
in accepting a position with which many of the trials
and hardships peculiar to a new country must neces-
sarily be connected.

"In this honorable resolve, involving self-denial of
no ordinary character, we are p(»rsuad'Ml you will be
fully sustained, that the promise, * Lo, 1 am with you
alway, even unto the end of the world,' yea, and to

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

4 ' I i

"■■ir

the ends of the earth, will on your behalf as on that
of every true minister of Christ, be fully realized.

" In your capacity as a teacher of the truth we
take pleasure in bearing testimony to your zeal and
faithfulness. In dividing the Word of Life you have
not failed to declare the whole counsel of God. As a
man and a Christian you have gained the highest
respect of all classes. And as a pastor you have
endeared j'ourself to the hearts of many, through
your faithful visitations, and the marked and unvary-
ing kindness that has ever characterized your per-
formance of thio important part of the Christian
minister's work.

"Although at times you may have gone to the
discharge of your duties in such weakness of body
and depression of mind and in doubt as to whether or
not you were materially contributing to Ihe building
up of Christ's cause on the earth, yet we are pleased
to know, and to you it may justly be matter of
rejoicing, that ' your labor has not been in vain in the
Lord'; for from this and many other congregations
throughout the length and breadth of this land there
will arise soulr. who, redeemed through your instrumen-
tality from the bondage of sin and death, will in the
day of righteous recompense be publicly given to you
as the attesting seals to your ministry, and the full
and satisfymg reward of your zealous efforts in the
work of soul -saving. The consideration will prove
powerful to your support and comfort — that for the
toilers in God's vineyard, for the watchers on the
walls of Zion, and for those who have mingled in the
vale of strife in closest conHict with the alien ibrces
of evil — for all such there cometh a time of rest and
witli it tlie hour of reward.

" We request your acceptance of this testimonial as
in some slight degree tangible evidence of the esteem

5 on that
[ized.
iruth we
zeal and
ou have
I. As a
highest
3U have
bhroucrh
iinvary-
ur per-
bristian

to the

't body

itiier or

uilding

pleaseti

fcter of

in the

Rations

I there

umen-

in the

o vou

e full

n the

prove

>r the

the

n the

orces

and.

VALEDTCTORV SERVICES.

and affection we individually and unitedly entertain
for you ; and with it the prayer that you may be
abundantly successful in your mission work, and that
a happy and prosperous future may be granted unto
you and to your esteemed family.

*' Robert Macdonald, Chairman,
Richard Jones Tackaberry,
George Wright, A.M., M.B.,
Henry J. Keighly,
Wm. R. Hamil'^on,
Fred. R. Stewart,
Robert Thompson,
m. l. hutchins,

Committee.
" Toronto, May 8th, 1868."

il as
eem

CHAPTER III.

THE FORTHGOING OF THE MISSIONARY

PARTY.

\ i

This took place on Saturday the 9th of May, when
we left Toronto for Hamilton, where we were to
spend the Sabbath and attend the opening services of
the new Centenary Church, there to enjoy the much-
desired privilege of hearing Dr. Punshon's dedica-
tory sermon, which, I need not say, was a magnificent
discourse. On Monday we were all exceedingly busy
in completing the preparations for our forward move-
ment. Horses, harness, waggons and son.o lug-
gage, as well as the entire party, except Mrs. Young
and myself, going via the Wei land Canal and Lake
Erie, left for St. Catharines, where they took the
steamer for Milwaukee.

As I was charged with the responsibility of bear-
i:ig, guarding and distributing the funds furnished
by the General Treasurer of the Missionary Society
to meet the expenses of the journe}^ and in part as
appropriations made as salaries, I remained a day
longer with Dr. Taylor and Mr. Sanford to perfect
arrangements for the exchange of our Canadian
money into United States currency, as " greenbacks "
were then considerably below par.

THE FORTHGOING OF THE MISSIONARIES.

1/^V

% when
-^ere to
^ices of

inuch-
dedica-
lificent
y busy

move-
lucr.

iToiin*^

Lake

ik the

bear-

lished

)ciety

rt as

day

rfect

idian

cks "

On the 14th of May we rushed on to Detroit, where
we took the steamer at midnight according to appoint-
ment. On landing at Milwaukee, we were, as a
matter of course, visited by the Customs officials, who,
despite the letters and assurances of the United States
Consul in Toronto, on which we fully relied as an all-
sufficient passport through their country for ourselves
and belongings, demanded duty on the entire outfit ere
we could be allowed to proceed. This demand occa-
sioned us some perplexity and a full day's delay, with
hotel expenses. Assisted by a good friend whom I
had known years ago in Belleville, we communicated
by telegraph with the authorities in Washington,
giving the facts, whereupon the message came forth-
with to these officious officials — " Allow the mission
party to proceed." We proceeded. T have not troubled
the Milwaukeeans since. Thence we travelled by rail
to the Mississippi River and thence by steamer to St.
Paul, where upon our landing a general reconstruc-
tion took place, and waggons and horses and all
our efifects put in shape in a hurry for another on-
ward movement. The freight and the luggage were
sent on by rail to St. Cloud, while we " hitched up "
and drove some eighty miles to Clearwater, a small
village pleasantly situated in a fine country.

I will now avail myself of a letter written by me
at Fort Garry, July 20th, 18()8, which will suffice as a
description of the tedious journey before us :

" At Clearwater we pitched our tents in the midst of
good pasturage for our horses, and wliere our Cana-
dian animals received their first lessons in ' hobbling,'
to their great discomfort and annoyance.

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

!5i

111 ! 1^;

|:-

■I

" This hobbling process, which consists in tieing the
forelegs of the horse together, or within a few inches
of each other — ordinaril}^ by a strap, with us by a piece
of cotton, one and a-half yards long and eight inches
wide — seems a barbarous practice, and yet a necessary
evil on the plains. How else could we keep them
from ' stampeding ' when assailed by mosquitoes ?
When thus tied the poor creature can neither run,
trot, nor walk, — but barely ' hobble.' For some time
they fret considerably ; but they become reconciled,
and then get up and down and roll over quite readily.
Here several of our party went into tent life ; others
found comfortable board, at reasonable rates, at the
Temperance House, — while Brother McDougall and
myself, Mrs. Young and Miss McDougall received a
hearty welcome to the home of one of the most
generous men with whom it has been my privilege
to meet — a Mr. Stevens, formerly of Stanstead, Canada.
This large-hearted man and his e(iually kind lady
entertained us in the kindest manner during our stay,
and gave nearly all their time to the furtherance of
our objects. We feel under very high obligations to
Mr. and Mrs. Stevens, and pray that they may
receive their reward both in this world and in that
which is to come. Here the strange appearance of
Mr. McDougall's Red River carts amused us all not a
little. Since that we have seen so much of them that
ail power to amuse has been forever lost. A very
peculiar kind of thing is the Red River cart. A pair
of veiy large awkward-looking wheels, attached to a
frame that serves for shafts, and also as box, and all

THE FORTHGOING OF THE MISSIONARIES.

ing the
inches
a piece
inches
eessary
) them
uitoes ?
ir run,
le time
>nciled,
eadily.
others
at the
11 and
ived a
most
vilege
mada.
lady
stay,
ce of
ns to
may
that
e of
ot a
that
^ery
)air
to a
all

without iron. The raw hide of a buffalo or ox supplies
the lack of iron, both on the wheel and axle. But
little grease is ordinarily used on them, and as a con-
sequence they make music not exactly like an organ,
and when one hundred of them make up a train they
can be heard, as they come groaning and screeching
along, for a long distance. Mr. McDougall had a
number of these beauties at Clearwater to be repaired
and got ready for our journey — and we all required
time to buy our provisions, waggon covers, and other
comforts and necessaries ' too numerous to mention,'
and to get our goods ready for transportation to Fort
Garry, and thus we were detained for several days
between Clearwater and St. Cloud. Leaving St. Cloud,
we left all railroading and telegraphing behind us for
a time. How strange it seems that I cannot now
travel by steam and communicate by lightning, nor
even ride in a stage coach ; these things are not here
as yet. And then, instead of two or three mails
a day, and daily papers from many points, here we
get a weekly mail and a weekly paper. From this
point, too, we strike cut upon our long prairie drive
of six hundred miles to Fort Garry — and well-nigh
sixteen hundred to Edmonton House for Brothers
Campbell and McDougall.

" All along our road to Sauk Centre, seventy miles
from St. Cloud, we found settlements where we
bought milk, or eggs, or bread, paying quite enough
always for the article. The railroad now reaching
to St. Cloud will next year, it is hoped, reach Sauk
Centre, and so the glory will depart from the former

!!•

. i\

! ■■ I

IMl

■i >
4 ! •

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

and go westward with ' the star of empire,' even to
the latter. Alexandria is a small village to which
we were conducted by a most wretched road through
eight miles of woods. Leaving it we forded a river
with some trouble, and soon found ourselves beyond
the settlements — few houses being seen between
Alexandria and Fort Abercrombie. And Abercrom-
bie itself, though marked on the map, is vastly more
in the imagination of the student Oi the map than it
is a reality before the eye of the traveller. A few
log-houses and long stables, and one miserable store
with prices high enough to frighten one, and a sort
of wooden structure called a ' fort ' ; these make up
the celebrated, and to us long-looked for, Fort Aber-
crombie. Here we fell in with, and well-nigh into,
' Whiskey Creek ' — it is not whiskey, though else I
fear many would emigrate thither and form a settle-
ment. We found it a miserable mire-hole and un-
bridged, and so we had to set to work on a fearfully
hot day to fill it up with oak bushes and brush, and
then dash our tired horses across the abominable
place and up a steep bank, as best we could.

'* ' Honor to whom honor is due/ therefore I
wish here to acknowledge our o-reat indebtedness to
the experience, energy, courage and presence of mind
of our good Brother McDougall. Of course he was
commander-in-chief all through, but in these trouble-
some and dangerous places we all looked to him for
guidance and help, and did not look in vain. We
certainly did plunge into some of the deepest slough
holes, where bottom seemed afar off, and climb up

THE FORTHGOING OF THE MISSIONARIES.

even to
) which
through

n river
beyond
)etween
3rerom-
y more
than it

A few
e store
i a sort
ike up

Aber-
1 into,

else I
settle-
id un-

•fiilly
and

nable

I)re I
ss to
mind

was
able-

for

We
•ugh

some of the steepest and most slippery banks, and
run across some of the most rickety bridges, and
rock and roll alonof over or into some of the worst ruts
I have ever seen. These things considered, in con-
nection with the cruelty and neglect of some of these
teamsters, it is no marvel that the bones of so many
faithful horses and oxen are left annuallv alonor this
road to whiten o;i the plains.

" Through mercy our animals got through safely,
and, with one or two exceptions, not nmch poorer
than when we left St. Cloud.

" The mosquitoes were not so bad as last year, yet
bad enough, certainly. Nor are these prairie mos-
quitoes dwarfs by any means. A wit once said,
' Many of them would \n .igh a pound ' ; I suppose
you know how that held good. Our horses were
tormented occasionally by a large fly — called ' bull-
dogs ' out here. They are larger than our Canada
ox fly, and most cruel in their bite. In fact the
'mos([uito,' ' buttalo-gnat,' and 'bull-dog seemed
to have prairie appetites, and every traveller across
these plains knows what that means. The fact is,
everything here is on a large scale — here is pasturage
for a continent, a vast meadow of God's own planting
that almost resembles the ocean for extent.

" How appropriate that the appetites of all living
things, travellers, mosquitoes, horses and oxen, should
correspond ! Through the greater part of the road
settlers are not to be found. We travelled a week
across this ' livhig green ' of high prairie grass and
low bushes without passing a human habitation. At

3^1

\<:

I .'

•

1 ' v-( I

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

other points we saw tliem tem and fifteen miles apart
— but little opportunity for taio-bearing in such
cases.

No doubt thousands of families long ere this v^ould
have settled along this line of road and occupied
these fertile and beautiful plains but for the great
Sioux massacre which took place a few years ago.
We felt sad in gazing upon the ruins of many a house
where happy families once lived, whose blood was
shed by these cruel savages. The present scattered
population still have a dread of them, and asked us at
difFerent places, ' Are you not afeard of the Injuns ? '
Well, I am happy to say, we were kept from any
fear on that point and did not meet, so far as I know,
a single Sioux Indian. A large number passed close
by one day, and had we been an hour earlier we
should have met ; but we did not, nor did we desire
the interview. They are great thieves, and might
have coveted some of our horses. Glad I was that
temptation was not put in their way by us. They
hate the ' Yankees,' as they call the new settlers and
soldiers, and intend to scalp all they can ; and there
is no lack of hatred on the other side toward these
' red devils,' as they call them. Up at ' Devil's
Lake ' — what a name ! — to which we saw many
waggon loads of provisions going for the soldiers
working at the fort, they have recommenced their
cruelties, and several have been scalped. Of course
this must come to an end ; the barbarian must suc-
cumb before the onward march of civilization. O
that he might be Christianized and saved ! But there

THE FORTHGOING OF THE MISSIONARIES.

es apart
in such

8 vrould

•ccupied

e great

brs ago.

a house

od was

mattered

id us at

ijuns ? '

m any

know,

;d close

ier we

desire

might

3 that

They

"s and

there

these

devil's

lany

Idiers

Itheir

mrse

auc-

lere

are many among these frontier men with whom ex-
termination is the one idea. They have little faith
in our efforts to evangelize, and would send the
soldier, and re])eating rifle, and revolver, instead of
the minister, and the Bible, and the school.

" Georgetown is the name of a little village consist-
ing of a store and a few houses, and about half-way
to Fort Garry from St. Cloud. Here we ferried the
Red River. In high water the steamer comes up
from Fort Garry to this place, and with a little ex-
pense and with a smaller boat it might go up nearly
all the season. When we passed she was going up
to Frog Point, about thirty miles, I believe, below
Georgetown. The sight of a steamer amid the vsoli-
tude of these uninhabited plains produced (juite a
sensation in our camp ; and in a neighboring camp
of Canadians, who were from near Goderich, a greater
excitement was caused, for live or six fine horses
broke away and stampeded ten or twelve miles ere
they were caught. Pembina is another small place
marked on the map, and whose name is often on the
tongue of the traveller out here. It is the extreme
north-western boundary of Uncle Sam's extensive
farm. Of course there is a Customs house and post-
office here. A large business is done in the former,
and to the latter the United States postage stamp will
bring a letter from any part of the States, or one Cana-
dian ten-cent stamp from Canada, but the postage
hence to Red River Settlement is one penny sterling
on every letter and paper. This can't be prepaid, as
the postal arrangements are peculiar. Friends sending

I i

; I

: ! ii'!

: ji :
•h I

i i j ; " i

I'M : I .1

h- j^i

MANITOBA M*EMORIES.

papers or letters can put on the proper stamps for
Canada and the States, and send on, and we'll do the
rest. Just across the lines here the Hudson Bay
Company have a comfortable and safe-looking fort.
But, perhaps, like some other places out here, * 'tis
distance lends enchantment to the view.'

" After crossing into our good and beloved Victoria's
dominions, our party joined heartily in singing the
national anthem, after which our loyal brother,
E. R. Young, hoisted the Union Jack, a beautiful flag
with which he was presented in Canada. This little
manifestation of loyalty had a twofold effect. It
indicated to the settlers our nationality and home
feeling, and then it either frightened or vexed a pair
of TJnited States horses connected with our train to
that degree that they forthwith ran away. The
skedaddlers ' were soon overhauled, and with the
good old flag leading us we pursued the even tenor of
our way.

" Leaving Pembina, nothing special occurred until
we arrived within four miles of Fort Garry. On that
day we fully expected to see the fort, and pushing
on, were not a little disappointed, and perhaps an-
noyed, that a miserable piece of a road, in a neglected
and miry condition, kept us back, and as night was
upon us we were compelled to camp within four miles
of the fort amid swarms of mosquitoes, and in a
place that seemed very uninviting. In this there
was a special Providence. About two o'clock the next
morning, amid much lightning and thunder, a fearful
storm of rain and wind, a sweeping tornado, came

:i t

THE FORTHGOIXG OF THE MISSIONARIES.

mps for
1 do the
3n Bay
ng fort,
re, * 'tis

ictoria's
ing the
brother,
iful flag
lis little
feet. It
i home
d a pair
train to
The
ith the
ienor of

suddenly upon us. It was indescribably terrific — a
real prairie storm, such as the ' oldest inhabitant '
does not remember to have experienced before. Two
tents were borne down by the first rush, and their
occupants left without shelter under the pelting
storm. Our tent was in danger of being run down
by our waggon and buggy, which were driven by thf»
wind right against it ; but the Lord kept us in safety,
and when the storm had raged out its hour we were
all thankful to find but little harm done. And now
mark the Providence. Had we reached the settle-
ment and tented in the open prairie where the storm
was more severe, our waggons and tents must have
been destroyed. Near the fort one cart was blown
right across the river and many were broken, several
houses were demolished, and a new Episcopal church
was levelled to the ground and a man killed.

"We felt that the hand of God was upon us for good
and that it became us to bless His holy name for His
continued care. On the day following, we crossed the
Assiniboine by a ferry, looked into Fort Garry and
Winnipeg, and then passed on to an encampment on
the prairie six miles out, where the horses could rest
and graze during the Sabbath. Thus have we been
brought to our destination after a month's journey-
ing from St. Cloud to Fort Garry."

But what a sorry scene was presented by that
long-thought-of town of Winnipeg on the day we
entered it ! What a mass of soft, black, slippery
and sticky Red River mud was everywhere spread
out before us ! Streets with neither sidewalks nor

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

r I

crossings, with now and again a good sized pit of
mire for the traveller to avoid or flounder through
as best he could ; a few small stores with poor goods
and high prices ; one little tavern where " Dutch
George " was " monarch of all his survey " ; a few
passable dwellings with no " rooms to let," nor space
for boarders ; neither church nor school in sight or
in prospect; population about one hundred instead
of one thousand as we expected — such was Winnipeg
on July 4th, 18(58.

How unlike that fine city at this date, with a
population of thirty-five or forty thousand, and its
magnificent churches and colleges, fine public schools.
Parliament buildings, Court House, City Hall, stores,
residences, raih'oad stations, factories, street railway,
parks, iiotels and bridges. "The former things have
passed away."

" Distance lends enchantment to the view," and so
it was that Fort Garry and its environs fell short of
our expectations, and enchantment gave place to a
feeling of disappointment, with a strong tendency to
discouragement Moreover, a locust plague was on
all the land, and fields and whole farms, where
growing or ripening grain should have appeared,
were swept clean by these detestable devourers, so
that great scarcity, and even suffering from want in
the near future, seemed inevitable ; flour even then
was selling for from twenty-five to thirty shillings
sterling per hundred pounds, and oats for horse feed
two dollars a bushel, with the prospect of advance.
The buffiilo hunters were despairing of success.

id pit of
through
3r goods
" Dutch
" ; a few
or space
sight or
I instead
Winnipeg

, with a
and its
5 schools,
11, stores,
railway,
igs have

and so
short of
ce to a
ency to
was on

where
)peared,
rers, so
«rant in
3n then
hillings

se feed
Idvance.

^|Jv:'«iSi''!|?:-''^;|/'S^

'Mi

IMi

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

After a brief rest in our encampment on the
prairies, during which our finances were adjusted
and a statement of all expenses up to date prepared
for the " Mission Rooms " in Toronto, our party,
which had grouped together from Hamilton as a
unit, separated and became three parties. Rev. E. R.
Young and wife, taking passage in the little Hudson
Bay trading and freighting boat, worked by oars or
sails, as most convenient, proceeded down the Red
River to its entrance into Lake Winnipeg, and thence
up that lake to Norway House, a distance of about
three hundred miles, to their future field of toil ;
Revs. George McDougall and daughter, Peter Camp-
bell, Mrs. Campbell and two daughters, and Bro.
Snyder, wended their toilsome way to their more
distant missions in the great Saskatchewan country,
to be reached only by a tiresome journey of about
one thousand miles; while the missionary for the
" Red River Settlement," wife and son, remained in
Winnipeg to " set up our banners " as best they could
in the little muddy embryo city and surrounding
regions.

on the

adjusted

prepared

r party,

ton as a

lev. E. R.

J Hudson

y oars or

the Red

id thence

of about

of toil ;

ir Camp-

md Bro.

eir more

country,

f about

for the

ined in

ley could

bunding

CHAPTER IV.

PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS
INTERBLENDING,

Having parted thus with our fellow missionaries,
our first effort was to secure a house to rent as a par-
sonage, and failing in this, as well as in our efforts to
secure a boarding-house, we began to fear lest we
should be compelled to " tent out " for a still longer
period. This was decidedly perplexing. Just then,
however, a kind-hearted couple invited us for a short
time to occupy a room in their rented home, into
which, with our tent furniture, we gladly moved.
There we remained for the next three months, and
there, on his invitation, I opened my commission on
the following Sabbath by preaching my first sermon
in the Red River Settlement, my text being, " I have
a message from God unto thee."

The work of

FOUNDATION LAVINO,

to which 1 at once addressed myself, and which
thenceforth occupied my thouglits very fully, was
entered upon in the different localities which seemod
to promise l)est as centres of missionary operations ; a
work in which my inime<liate successors, and in fact

I J

I I

liiii

I I

MANITOBA xMEMORIES.

all our pioneering brethren who have toiled in these
vast prairie regions since that period, have been
engaged — ever and everywhere finding it, as I did, a
toilsome, tedious, expensive and undemonstrative, as
well as an indispensable, work. This early "breaking
ground" involved the surmounting of many diffi-
culties, a few of which only shall be indicated just
now.

In October, 1868, 1 closed a letter to the Christian
Guardian with these words : " Mercies abound, and
so do difiiculties. Methodism was never yet estab-
lished in an important field like this without earnest
and persevering effort. The devil and bat-like bigots
have always opposed its introduction, l)ut as the sun
shines in spite of all the owls and bats in creation,
so ' Christianity in earnest ' will advance if God give
His blessing."

Again in December, 1868, I wrote Dr. Wood thus:
" I am not a prophet, but I will predict for this
mission, whose foundations I am now trying to lay, a
glorious future." Whether in that I was really
" foretelling," or only " forthtelling," I must leave to
some of the highest of the " higher critics " to decide.
Wliat has transpired since tlien within tlie bounds of
tlie old Red River Mission seems a glorious carry-
ing up of a grand superstructure on the foundations
then being laid : and the numerous self-supporting
charges, the fine and costly churches and parsonages
which have been built, the large congregations and
Sabbath-schools which have been gathered, and the
converted and infiuential membership which has been

PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

in these
^e been
I did, a
itive, as
ireaking
ly diffi-
ted just

hristian
:nd, and
t estab-

earnest
:e bigots

the sun
creation,
Jod give

od thus:
for this
lay, a
really
eave to
decide,
iinds of
carry -
dations
jporting
onages
ns and
nd the
is been

enrolled — and last, but not least, our college work,
now being so successfully prosecuted, with prospects
so encouraging — all seem to show that I was not
prophesying falsely, even though not a professed
prophet.

My first sixty-mile trip through the settlements
along the Assiniboine River — my son accompanying
me — resulted in the securing of permission, from
several kindly-disposed strangers, to hold service and
preach in their homes to any whom I might persuade
to come and worship with us and hear the Word.
The journey commenced with three Sabbath appoint-
ments — Winnipeg, Sturgeon Creek and Headingly ;
then came a long, tedious drive on Monday of some
thirty-five miles through a very scattered population,
except in the " White Horse Plains," which was occu-
pied by French half-breeds, whose language I could
not use, and who, I presume, thought they had no use
for me, as they were well provided with a church and
bell, and priests and sisters of charity. But from
" Windmill Point," in the " Poplar Point " country, to
Portage la Prairie, through a very inviting region, we
found many who accorded us a hearty welcome, and
showed us needed hospitalities. I'rue, all were not
like-minded. I suppose the exclusive, narrow-minded
and narrow-hearted bigot may be found everywhere —
at any rate, I discovered as many of his kith and kin
in various parts of the country as I desired to meet,
for I felt then, as I feel now, that it will be (juite soon
enough to come into close acquaintanceshi]) with such
when we meet, if we ever do, in the " Promised Land."

W i

11 '"

'■I lit!

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

In lie escimation of such I was an intruder, and my
coming an impertinence, an invasion of their rights ;
for they, seemingly, thought that they held a sort of
pre-emptive right to execute " the great commission "
in that country — a right without any obligation being
coupled therewith. At " Windmill Point " I was
permitted to open an appointment in the home of a
kind man, an English half-breed — Mr. Sandison, the
miller — who later on became a useful and much-
respected member, and, I think, a class-leader. The
Rev. Mr. Robison, who came to my aid in 1809, wos
made a great blessing to this neighborhood. Blessea
revival services were conducted and a little church
erected, which, having become dilapidated, is just now
being replaced by a better one. A few miles farther
on I was permitted to open an appointment which
has ever since been known as " Gowler's," from the fact
that Mr. William Gowler had kindly and promptly
opened his house and home to me on my arrival. Mr.
Gowler was and is one of " nature's noblemen," whose
nobility of character, as vvell as his enjoyments in
religion and zeal for God's glory, were ere long
greatly augmented. His house has been a resting-
place for many a weary missionary since he so
heartily welcomed me thereto in 1868. Here also a
class was formed and a church erected, and blessed
revivals experienced a little later on. I was greatly
delighted at meeting him at the Conference in
Winnipeg, June, 1892, as one of the lay-members of
that Conference, and to be reminded of the pleasing
fact that, having himself led the way into the " ark

PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

md my

rights ;

sort of

ission "

1 being

I was

le of a,

on, the

much-

'. The

>9, was

Blessed

church

st now

Farther

which

he fact

>mptly

Mr.

whose

[its in

long

sting-

lie so

tlso a

lessed

(•eatly

je in

Irs of

Lsing

ark

of Christ's Church," he was soon followed by " all his
house," and many of his relatives and neighbors as
well.

It has been said, " Variety is the spice of life,"
and so just here I will mention a somewhat spicy
occurrence which took place in those early days of
foundation laying in this locality. A certain fussy
little half -fledged, not over-gifted nor unduly popular
official regarded the advent of Methodism with much
disfavor and evident uneasiness, and thought it his
duty to express himself to Mr. Gowler anent the im-
propriety o:' which he had been guilty in opening his
house for Methodist preaching and in showing hos-
pitality to the wandering preacher who had the
audacity to come there to preach; affirming, more-
over, that it was very impolitic to do so, as I would
soon become discouraged and return to Canada, and
then he would find himself awkwardly situated, in
view of what he had done ; and still further, that I
had no right to preach, not having received auth. rity
from the bishop. And so passing around the neigh-
borhood ahead of my appointments, using the same
arguments, he warned the people against attending
those meetings. This expenditure of logic was duly
reported to me, and drew forth the following reply :
" Say to Mr. that I was preaching the Gospel be-
fore he was in the cradle, and should continue doing so
during the Lord's pleasure ; and, also, that Methodists
and Methodist missionaries would be found in that
region until the miTennium." More than a quarter
of a century has elapsed since, and it looks very much

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

just now as if this forthtelling, or foretelling, were
likely to be literally fulfilled, for both at Windmill
Point and at Gowler's the work of erecting new and
greatly improved churches is being pushed forward
to completion by a people who are grateful for the
introduction of Methodism and its prevalence, despite
the puny rop lion or cold-shouldering it met with
in 1868 ; ax.*.; v.hA:, with help from above, will continue
faithful to tj.e tr-^r* and loyal to Christ and His
Church until permitted to see either the millennium
or the New Jerusalem.

My next appointment was opened at the " High
Bluff," in the home of Mr. and Mrs. Angus Smith,
who kindly invited us to use a portion of their house
wherein to lodge and also to conduct services. Here
we organized the first class in the settlement — Mr.
and Mrs. Smith, Mr. and Mrs. Inkster, Mr. and Mrs.
Norquay, Mr. and Mrs. Dillworth, Mr. Murray, and
several others becoming members thereof, with Mr.
Dillworth as their first leader. I shall never forget the
blessed influence experienced on that occasion, as I
addressed the people from " Fear not, little flock, for
it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the
kingdom," and as we held our first communion after
organizing the class. No wonder we went on our way
rejoicing after such a gracious uplift. Proceeding
thence seven or eight miles to Portage la Prairie, we
were favored by very kind Presbyterian friends, Mr.
and Mrs. McBean and their young people, in whose
home we found a comfortable resting-place, and a
room in which to conduct worship and preach the

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PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

Word. As this was practically the westerly limit of
the Red River Settlement at that date, I retraced my
steps to Winnipeg, to enter upon my next Sabbath's
duties.

As the weeks passed by, while we were occupying
the "one room" already referred to, we were ever on
the lookout for a house to rent wherein we might
winter and hold services. Failing in this, I arranged
for a building then in course of erecti on the corner
of Portage Avenue and Main Streitb s a monthly
rental >f $26.00, the place to be roiniy fur occupancy
within six weeks. But at the ena c ^ ihat term the
building was far from completion while the owner's
funds were exhausted. As there s^e.ned but one way
out, I deemed it advisable, under the circumstances,
to advance him three months' rent to enable him to
complete the work ; and after all we were compelled
to wait for many weeks more while we toe' jard at
" Dutch George's " tavern. To expedite matters I
employed a plasterer, and turned in myself to pre-
pare and serve him with mortar, until the place was
roughly plastered. The intense cold soon froze the
plaster, v^hich left the walls in a condition to render
our moving in for some time extremely hazardous.
However, we were tired of living :' i a tavern, and so
by keeping up fires in the rooms we succeeded in
" thawing out " and partially drying the walls so as to
make our entrance warrantable, despite the steam
and dampness that prevailed. On Saturday, che 13th
of December, we took possession of the building, and
on the next day opened the lower flat as our first

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" Wesley Hall." I preached at 10 a.m., and Mrs.
Young commenced Sabbath -school work at 3 p.m.,
while I took my other two services in the country.
Our congregations, which had become small in the
little uncomfortable court-room at the fort, now
increased very considerably, and an evening service
and class-meeting during the week were commenced
forthwith. Thus we struggled on, with our high
rent and heavy outlay for fuel and provisions, etc.,
during the severe winter of 1868-G9.

My experiences during my first winter in the " Red
River Settlement " were decidedly unique, tending to
acclimatize on the one hand, and to test my faith
and hope and to tax and develop my sympathies
on the other. The season, to strangers in the country,
was a severe one : intense cold, blizzard gales and
deep snow-drifts combined to suggest for one's safety
buffalo-skin coats, fur mitts, and moccasins with
heavy feet wraps, with grizzly bear-skin or buffalo
robes for the cutter in day travelling, and for a bed
of warmth in the night season. The fuel brought by
the natives to our Winnipeg market was generally of
the poplar-pole sort, often green, and at best but a
poor substitute for the harder woods of Ontario and
Quebec, and yet equalling the best as to the price !
But these experiences, with the long and tiresome
drives up and down the rivers and across the wild
prairies to the scattered settlements, were less trying
to the physical, than was the scarcity of life's neces-
saries, which was but too apparent in many a home.

PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

rice !
)me

rild

\mg
lea-
le.

THE FAMINE SEASON.

The winter of 1868-69 in the country now known
as Manitoba will be remembered by multitudes as a
season of famine, with urgent appeals from the needy
to those possessing abundance for speedy assistance to
prevent suffering and possible starvation. The reason
of this scarcity is easily given. To some extent the
cause was a two-fold failure — an utter and universal
failure of the crops on the one hand, and failure of
the buffalo hunt on the other. The locust plague was
upon the land, hence the failure of crops. It is well-
nigh impossible to give an adequate idea to those
who have never witnessed the coming, in air-filling
clouds, of myriads of these detestable devourers, and
of the widespread devastation which is speedily
effected by them. In sone respects such a scene is
better read of than witnessed. Pity the agriculturists
who are compelled to witness it ! In the autumn
of 1867 the Province was invaded from the north-
westerly and less paradisaical portions of Uncle
Sam's domains, by a strong force of these " abomina-
tions " that cause desolation. Their arrival was too
late to cause much mischief in 1867, as the crops had
been already secured, but they speedily set to work
to do the next worst thing for the settlement, viz., to
deposit their eggs, myriads upon myriads of the^.i, in
the soil of gardens, fields and prairies, and along the
hard-travelled road tracks, to render certain in the
early spri' g an upspringing of a great army of infant
destroye simultaneously with an upspringing of

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e niii!.

h i ''

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

vegetation to feed and fatten on, to the prevention
of the harvest that men had hoped and toiled for.

The heavy frosts of the winter did not seem to
interfere with the aims of these parent locusts, for
with the coming of the warmth of spring came also
the hatching-out process, until it seemed as if every
blade of grass and every sprout of grain were pre-
empted by a score or more of these vigorous and now
naturalized hoppers. The tender plant was quickly
eaten off, and even quite down into the roots, and
this repeated until all vitality was gone and the
eater alone survived. Ere June ended, this work of
destruction had been about completed, and without
waiting for their wings, they took up their line of
march in a southerly direction, hopping along in
triumph until a further development should come,
when, fully equipped, they should ascend to the
region of the clouds, and taking advantage of fair
winds, should more easily and rapidly proceed in
quest of pastures fresh and more abundant. Our
party of missionaries, passing out of Dakota into
Assiniboia, met these hordes of evil-doers about July 1,
1868. It was as if the " prince of the power of the
air " had marshalled this powerful detachment of
destroyers to indicate his might, and discourage those
from entering the country whose mission was one of
salvation ; in the meanwhile soliloquizing thus : " If I
can't prevent your entering in, I will at least either
starve you out or make you very miserable after you
get in."

There seen.s as little of the haphazard and as

J ■

PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

much of order in the movements of an army of
locusts as is manifest in those of a swarm of bees.
That there is leadership in both cases one can hardly
floubt, but the whereabouts or ijer8onnel — so to
speak — thereof is perhaps not so apparent in the
former as in the latter case. They appear nmch
averse to any effort to get around a difficulty or
obstacle, but greatly prefer surmounting or climbing
over it. The stone wails of old Fort Garry did not
tumble at their approach, and so carrying out their
principles and acting out " final perseverance," they
continued hopping against the rocky barrier until
they fell, rather ingloriously it must be admitted, as
many poor obstinate human fools have done, in at-
tempting the impossible. So great was the number
of these stupid suicides that, for sanitary reasons and
to get rid of an intolerable nuisance, the Hudson
Bay Company's officials sent a gang of men with
wheelbarrows to trundle these defunct devourers over
the bank and into the current of the Assiniboine
River, that they might be swept down stream to
Lake Winnipeg for the benefit, possibly, of the jack-
fish and catfish and sturgeons of that great lake.

Soon after our arrival it became apparent to us,
as to many others, that there was not a sufficient
supply of food in the country to tide the population
over the coming non-producing seasons of winter
and spring. Many were very sow to take in the
situation, and having a sufficiency for themselves and
families from what they had kept ov^^r from the
harvest of 1867, they hesitated not to declaim against

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MANITOBA ^1 EMORIES.

any agitation of the question of the country's peril
as unnecessary and injurious to general interests.
My tirst missionary journey of one hundred and
twenty miles througli the best grain raising portions
of the settlement satisfied me tliat, however safe
a few might be from scarcity of food, the many
must be brought into great straits and even peril if
left entirely to their own resources ; and this convic-
tion deepened and strengthened as the days went by
and my knowledge of tlie existing state of things
extended. In a few weeks, and mainly through the
representations of our only news])aper. The Kor-
ivesfer, many v»'ere brought to see the need of con-
certed and immediate action in order to ward oft'
threatening calamity ; and as a result a co-operative
relief association was organized and a large connnittee
was appointed, consisting of the bishops and ministers
of the churches and several prominent and influen-
tial citizens, whose duty would be to make appeals to
the outside world for aid, to take in charge all con-
tributions that might be sent, and to inquire closely
and thoroughly into the circumstances of the families
seeking aid. as well as to distribute tlirough sub-
coiinnittees the supplies recpiired.

Tlie result of our investigation was sufliciently
alarming to warrant solicitude and ui'gent eftbrts to
save large numbers from suffering, as the following
statement, mad(^ up as early as November, LSGS, will
show : The schedides carefully tilled up and sent in
from \arious parts of the country showed that there
were of the Protestant section, 21() families, repre-

PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

htly

1^ to

ill
in

irc-

senting 951 persons, in need of immediate aid ; and
in the Roman Catholic portion, 207 families, repre-
senting 1,391 persons, in similar need, making a total
of 423 families and 2,342 persons even then requiring
help if *' the wolf was to l)e kept from the door."
Twenty barrels of flour per week, with a large
quantity of meat, were distributed as early as the
date above given. A little later on, the number of
cases needing help increased to over 3,000, and the
quantities of food given out proportionately increased.
Great difficulty was experienced in getting the sup-
plies forwarded in time to ])revent suffering, inasmuch
as long stretches of unoccupied prairie intervened
between the terminus of the railroad — at that time —
and their destination ; and, winter having set in, the
freighting of these supplies across those untracked
regions, for three or four hundred miles, became both
tedious and hazardous as well as expensive. Many
of our hardy Red River freighters, however, under-
took the task for the consideration of one-half their
loads on delivery — they having no share in the gra-
tuitous distribution. As the w^eary winter months
passed along, some were able to supplement th(^ aid
received with game they were fort\niat(* enough to
shoot or trap, or fish secured from the lakes and
rivers. In one of my missionary visits to White Mud
River, some eighty miles from Wiimipeg, I found the
people of the settlement subsisting mainly on a
scanty sup[)ly t>f rab})its snared in the bush, and
jack-fish taken \'vou\ under the ice in the river. TIk;
unsuccessful buffalo hunters Imd v»»ry " liard luck "

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

'|r

also, for, after their long journeys to the distant plains,
where they had been wont to fa,li in with vast herds
of buffalo, they utterly failed to find the over-hunted
animals, and were compelled to kill for food some of
their ponies to prevent starvation on the homeward
journey.

From these statements it will be seen that our first
winter in the Red River Settlement involved a good
deal that taxed heavily our sympathies, our faith
and hope, and also our slight income. Provisions of
all kinds went up to a high price. I paid in one
instance thirty-six shillings sterling a hundred tor
flour, and for many months t* o dollars a bushel for
oats for my horse, a supply of which, by the way, I
always took with me on my journeys, for it was more
prudent for me to miss a meal than that my hard-
driven horse should go without grain. But the
" good hand of God was upon us for good," and we
were brought through it all in safety and m His good
time. With the opening of spring came in, by
flat boats and steamer, additional supplies of food for
the needy, a.id large quantities of seed grain and
potatoes for ohose who were pledged to plant and not
consume them. The summer, when it came, V)rought
us once more an abundant harvest, for which we
brought our oflering of thanksgiving.

During tlio winter I received from many kind
friends, through the late Rev. Dr. Rose and others,
collections and contributions from various parts of
QUr work, to be distributed hy me among the more

PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

needy of my flock apart from the general distribution.
This was a great kindness and help. We had not as
yet any poor fund, and yet we had needy ones whom
we greatly desired to assist.

Together with this duty of caring ^or the needy,
my attention was given during the winter to the
necessary preparations for building both a parsonage

by
II for

and
not

ight
we

ind

liers,

liore

jamf:s h. ashpown, esq.

and a church in Winnipeg. Accordingly I made ar-
rangements with two of the members of our little
class at High Bluff, Mossrs Nonjuay and Smith, for
the getting out of such timber — oak and poplar — as
would be required for parsonage and church, they to
raft it down and deliver it on the bank of the river
at Fort Garry in the spring of 1 869. These brethren
did their work faithfully and well, and these requi-
sites were on hand when needed. My kind friend,
Mr. Ashdown — then about the most industrious

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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and courageous of all the new comers, and now
one of the most prosperous and wealthy of all the
hardware merchants in Manitoba and the North-
West — aided me greatly with additional timber, and
also in lathing, painting, glazing, etc., in the com-
pleting of our parsonage. Many a hard day's work
we put in together on those premises. Mr. Ashdown
is now, and has been for years, an active member of
the Trust Board of Grace Church and the manage-
ment of Wesley College, and a liberal supporter of
these interests. May he long be spared to his kind
family and to the Church.

My application to Governor McTavish — who was
ever a true frienil of mine — for a site on which to
erect a mission-house and a church, was presented by
him, with his recommendation, to the Governor-in-
Council of the Hudson Bay Company in London.
Owing to his influence, I presume — .and may I not
add. in answer to our earnest and importunate
prayers :* — the com})any grante*] an acre of their land
for tliat purpose, leaving the locatir'j^ thereof to the
( Jovernor liimsi'lf. In liis absence thero came about
a little liitcli Itetween the official in charge and myself
anent tlic location, I wanted it where he did not
wish to give it, and where he wished to give it I did
not want it. We finally struck this compromise : I
agreed, with his consent, to draw the timber then on
the river bank, with other building material, to the
sf>ot 1 had chosen, and then on the Governor's arrival
— which was loo' ed for daily — if he refused me that
site, to ^vmove it as he should direct. 'I'he material

^moL

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PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

I now
.11 the
Sforth-
jr, and
} coni-
work
lidown
iber of
an age -
•tev of
LS kind

lo was
lich to
ited by
Qor-in-
ondon.
I not
unate
land
,o the
al ►out
y.self
d not
I did
ise : 1
en on
o the
rival
that

was drawn, the contract for putting up the mission-
house was let, and the carpenters engaged to com-
mence work in two or three days, and yet no arrival.
As aforetime, we went to the great Helper for help,
and help came. The Governor arrived in time, and at
once, and heartily, he gave me the site I had chos :m,
to the great surprise of not a few. After much hard
work in hauling timber, stones, and carrying lumber,
etc., we succeeded in getting our new mission-house and
stable ready for occupancy, and took possession of it
as a family and held a class-meeting in it on the same
day (August 1 7th, 18G9), reserving the lower flat for
our services. I preached my first sermon there on
August 22nd from the text, " Hitherto the Lord hath
helped us." In this room, as our " Wesley Hall "
No. 2, we continued to hold service until our new
church was completed in September, 1871. The
reason of this delay in the erection of the church I
may give later on.

The following report of a specimen trin in Fujbruary,
IS(|{), given in a letter to Mr. John V donald, may
not be deemed inappropriate in this ( nection.

"My mission now extends from t * s point, when;
the Assiniboine River flows into thi Red River, u}>
along the banks of the former < 4ity miles; and
as 1 occasionally visit the lower fort, which is twenty
miles below this, on the Red River, I have a field of
one hundred miles in length. I shall give you the
best idea of my work, hy placing before you, in diary
form, the work of a ' trip,' as we call i' out here :

" January 131st, Sabbath -Con<lucted Sabbath-scliool

'M? *!

MANITOBA MEMORIEvS.

l.'^j

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in ' Wesley Hall,' town of Winnipeg, at 9.25 a.m. A
very fair attendance and the best of attention. A
good number of verses were recited, and the catechism
lessons were well prepared. At the close of the school
a good congregation assembled, and service com-
menced at 10.80 ; the subject of meditation was 1 Peter
iv. 7. I trust 'the seed fell into good ground.' A
drive of six miles brought me to Sturgeon Creek,
wliere I conducted service on Sabbath at 2 p.m., in a
dwelling-house kindly opened for the purpose, the
parish deacon's protest to the contrary notwithstand-
ing. Here an exceedingly attentive little company
listened closely to a conversational style of discourse
on the beautiful text, Rev^ xii 11, 'The blood of
tlie Lamb.' What a theme ! — and tlien, victory over
Satan ' by,' or an account of or througL the amazingly
efficacious blood of Christ.

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" ' Dear dying Lamb, thy precious blood
8hall never lose its power.'

Another drive of four miles and the Govvler farm
was reached, where at 4.30 p.m., I superintended a
small Sabbath-scliool, and then at 5.30 held service,
and warned all * neglecters ' of salvation from the good
old text, Hebrews ii. 3. In this neighborhood my
congregations have greatly increased of lr.te, and a
nucleus of a society has been formed by four persons
whose hearts God hath touched, and who liave, in
consequence, banded themselves togetiier as those
'desiring to flee from the wrath to come.' After

PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

m. A
on. A
echism
school
i com-
1 Peter

id; A

Creek,
n., in a
se, the
istand-
mpany
scour se
iood of
y over
izingly

farm

Ided a

jrvice,

good

|d my

ind a

Arsons

'e, in

[those

After

sermon I met them as a class ; and so, after conduct-
ing two Sabbath -schools, preaching three sermons,
travelling ten miles, and holding a little class and
prayer-meeting, I closed a blessed Sabbath day with
conversation and worship with this kind family, and
wrapping myself in my two buffalo robes, with some
good, sweet, soft hay in the corner of a room, as my
bed, I slept sweetly, and dreamed of some of my kind
friends in Canada.

" Monday morning, rose at five o'clock, and got off
as soon as practicable on my long day's drive. The
cold was as severe as I have felt it here, but in this
hijjh latitude we can bear it far l)etter than a less
degree in a damp region. Trav i: d forty miles in all,
and preached to a full congregation gathered on two
hours' notice, and felt it good to be there. In all my
travels I have not seen a congregation who seemed to
drink in the word as those do who compose this one
Surely tJie Lord will shortly pour upon them the
spirit of His grace !

" Tuesday, drove eight miles, and preached to
another very solemn and attentive company of wor-
shippers at the High Bluff. Here, by God's blessing,
despite all misrepresentions, a class was formed in
October, and continues to meet each Sabbath, with
encouraging prospects. The neighborhood had been
greatly neglected until my an-ival. Since that, al-
though I may not have ' provoked to love,' I cer-
tainly have to ' good works,' — at least of u certain
kind. Never was so much f»lerical attention "Xperi-
enced here before. Iti a fellowship meeting which 1

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

tki

! I'i

had held here, one of the newly gathered spake to
this effect : ' In our neglected condition I have often
prayed that some one might be sent to pr >ach the
Gospel plainly to us, that we might understand it and
feel its power, and now I thank God He has heard
my prayer, and sent that blessed Gospel into our very
houses.' Some of these ' babes in Christ' were, a short
time ago, actively engaged in rebelling against the
Divine throne and Government. One who was in
danger of descending to a drunkard's hell, but has
been quickened into newness of life, has written me
a letter, which I have just received, in which he says,
' I am happy to say that we are encouraged every
Sabbath, more and more, by God's help in our meet-
ings for woi'ship. We thank God that He has sent
you among us, as an instrument in His hand, to put
it in our hearts to meet and pray together. We
never lived so happy as we do at present. Trusting in
Go i we find that we get through the world much
easier tlian we did before. Ma}' God bless us and
give us strength to endure to the ond.'

" On Wednesday morning the parties who came
from the White Mud River — twenty-seven miles
from the Bluff — met me according to appointment,
and we drove that distance without resting. We
passed the twenty miles across the prairies without
seeing a house until we reached the little settlement.
As we passed along I was surprised to see the tall
prairie grass in some places standing erect, and
reaching al)Ove the snow some fchi*ee and even four
feet. Bands of liorses were wintering on it, and

PERPLEXIEIES AND ENCOltRAGEMENTS.

came

miles

[,ment,

Ithout

Iment.

le tall

and

four

and

looked well. At 6 p.m. I preached to a little neg-
lected company in the presence of a poor sufferer,
horn J(jhn v. 6. After visiting from house to house
these poor families, who subsisted chiefly on fish, and
preaching next morning at nine o'clock, and giving
the Sacrament of the I^ord's Supper to a few aged
people, and baptizing a babe, I returned to the High
Bluff', twenty-seven miles, on Thursday evening.

Friday morning it was my privilege to minister
to the comfort of an aged woman, who is said to be
fully one hundred years of age, and is the great-great
grandmother of the babe I baptized the day before,
and the mother of a Church of England mission-
ary. I need not state to you that I felt a peculiar
pleasure in communing with this ' aged disciple.' My
guide for this two miles' walk and back through the
woods, and who accompanied me to White Mud
River, is an aged man, whose case is a very interest-
ing one. He was brought up among the Indians,
and, until he was eighteen or twenty years of age,
knew not that there was such a being as a God.
Subse(piently he came among the whites, but says
that he understood very little of the read sermons
to which he listened from Sabbath to Sabbath, and
often wished the ministers wouhl come and explain
(he Scriptures to him. I have tried to render him
the aid required, and the poor man has followed nie
up from place to place on this trip, travelling over
sixty miles, and hearing me preach five sermons.
May he be saved ! Another poor man said to me, at
the White Mud River, 'We are thankful to you for

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

coming among us, as we can understand you well,
and if I had money enough I would never let you go
away.' On Friday night I preached in a neighbor-
hood near the Bluff in a new appointment, and on
Saturday night lectured on temperance, when over
twenty signed the pledge. This land is rum-cursed,
and I feel it my duty to preach and lecture temper-
ance everywhere.

"Sabbath, the 7th February. — Met class at nine;
preached at 10 a.m. ; drove eight miles, and preached
at one o'clock, and then pushed on rapidly fifteen
miles, visiting a sick woman along the road, and
preached again at five to a crowd. After receiving
three members on trial as the nucleus of another
class, and driving a mile after eight o'clock, I felt
that ' the sleep of a laboring man is sweet.' This day
I travelled twenty-five miles.

" Monday morning, rose at half -past four, and set
out on my return journey of a forty miles' drive, as
soon as practicable ; and after resting for the night at
Headingly, I reached home Tuesday about noon,
thankful indeed to find all well, and for the strength
thus to preach the blessed Gospel in the ' regions
beyond.' Oh, how delightful it is, my dear brother,
to preach ' Jesus and the resurrection,' to these hungry
and thirsty souls. But I can't bear the thought of
seeing so many desiring instruction, and yet feel, as
I do, that I can't supply all the lack. Let the patrons
of your — our — noble Missionary Society but know the
case, and I am sure the fault will not be theirs if an
assistant be not sent out in May next. Many are

'?#2

PERPLEXITIES AND ENCOURAGEMENTS.

waiting to see if I will get help before they cast in
their lot with us, for they say that I can't keep up
this field alone, but getting tired or worn out will
give them up, and then they will have to go back
where they were.

" ' Pray for us, and choose me out a good man, full
of faith and of the Holy Ghost,' and send him for-
ward to help reap * the fields already white unto
harvest.' "

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CHAPTER V.

THE ARRIVAL OF AN EFFICIENT HELPER.

On July 14th, 18G9, I was reinforced — not very
numerously, it is true, and yet very efficiently — by
the arrival of Rev. Matthew Robison as my assistant.
I had been pleading very importunately with the
Mission Rooms, Toronto, for a helper, urging, how-
ever, that none but an earnest, devout, adaptive and
consecrated young man — one who would be willing
to face difficulties and hardships and much hard work
— should be sent to fill that position. The selection
was wisely made, and Mr. Robison, from the first,
filled the bill as well, probably, as an^ other would
have done whom they could have chosen. After a
tedious journey across the plains from St. Paul,
Minnesota, in company with some Red River freight-
ers, he reached Winnipeg at 11 p.m., on Wednesday,
July 14th, and reported hiniHelf at once at our little
mission home as ready for service at any point I
might indicate. On Thursday lie accompanied me to
one of my week-day appointments a few miles up the
Assiniboine River, and opened his connnission by
preacliing his first sermon in the settlement. His
text was, " The Lord is my portion." Possibly he

THE ARRIVAL OP AX EFFICIENT HELPER.

may have concluded already from our surroundings
that he would hereafter have special need of a
" portion " such as earth cannot afford ; be that as it
may, he preached a plain, practical, earnest and
comforting sermon. The privilege of hearing a
sermon from some one else than myself was a rare
one, and much enjoyed, while the prospect of having
the counsel and co-operation of a missionary of our
own Church tended to relieve that feeling of isola-
tion and even loneliness which I had experienced
during the year past, as well as to strengthen my
hands in the great and good work. His arrival
afforded much comfort to the mission family, as well
as to myself, inasmuch as it would render unneces-
sary those long trips and absences from home, and
from my work in Winnipeg, which had been too
frequent in the past for the good of the cause.

After securing for him the needful outfit of horse,
harness and buckboard, I accompanied him on his
first trip through the country, and introduced him
to tlie people, with whom he soon became well
acquainted, and to whom his ministrations were
greatly blessed. Henceforth the old " Red River "
mission of magnificent distances became two missions.
Brother R. taking High Bluff as his centre of opera-
tions, and undertaking to sustain the appointments I
had opened in the neighborhoods adjacent, Windmill
Point, Gowler's, the Bluff, Portage la Prairie, White
Mud River, etc., and to oprn n<'w ones as soon as
opportunities might be affoi'ded : while I undertook
to supply MS !)est I could the appointnu'nts I had

I'-

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

commenced at Headiiigly, Sturgeon Creek, Wood-
lands, Rockwood, Lower Fort Garry, Springfield,
Prairie Grove and Winnipeg. Each mission was
still rather too large for the com fort of the mis-
sionary.

The people of the High Bluff mission soon found in
their new pastor one whom they unanimously re-
garded as " the right man in the right place." Nor
could it well be otherwise, for his Christian simplicity
in spirit and manner, his ardent desire, manifest in
his preaching and pastoral visits, to do them good in
the highest sense of the term ; his readiness to sacri-
fice ease and even to devote his scanty supply of funds
in order to the extension and consolidation of the
good work, conunended him to them as a true minister
of Christ. His preaching and exhortations had the
geimine old Methodist ring in their definiteness, in-
cisiveness, and faithfulness ; while his personal testi-
mony for Christ was given in tenderness, without any
seeming self-exaltation, and his prayers in family or
congregational worship were as free from cold for-
mality and stiltedness on the one liand, as from a
rhapsodical verbosity on the other. His free use of
the gift of song was a help and no hindrance to his
ministry.

At first all our services were of necessity held in
the homes of those who kindly gave us the privilege
solicited ; but Mr. Robison, as soon as practicable,
summoned his hearers to co-operation in the work of
erecting two or more small churches for their better
acconnnodation. His method — as mine had been,

'f.

THE ARRIVAL OF AN EFFICIENT HELPER.

mis-

iH, in-

esti-

any

y or

for-

>in a

je of

his

in
lege
ible,

of
tter
Jen,

and later on as tliat of Revs. M. Fawcett and J. M.
Harrison of those early days, and as has been of those
who have succeeded us and have succeeded in their
work — was not to say go, but rome, and the people
generally showed a readiness to come. What it cost
him in hard work and weariness for months together
to get out timber and liuild and fit up those little
churches cannot l)e imagined by those now occupying
that field. Matthew Robison was no loiterer, stand-
ing idle in the market-place and " waiting for some-
thing to turn up." Pioneer missionaries who are too
dignified or dilatory to assist, or even lead on, in such
a work, or to care for their own horse in journeying,
or to assist, now and again, when they have time and
strength to do so, the brother whose hospitality they
have shared, are not sufficiently Pauline to make
nuTch headway among the people. I am sorry to say
that I think I have known a few such. To them-
selves their want of success seemed a great mystery,
while it was not so regarded by the toil-worn ones to
whom they had been sent as laborers in the Master's
vineyard, and whose prejudices they had so unneces-
sarily turned against themselves. I have no patience
with, and not over much expectation from, a Metho-
dist preacher, whether on missions or self-supporting
circuits, who is manifestly guilty of neglect or cruelty
towards the poor animal whose misfortune it has
become to be compelled to carry or draw him through
mud and storm in heat and cold, nnd to and fro in
the performance of his duty ; and I am persuade<l
that the right thinking of his hearers will think and

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94,

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

f '

feel as I do. In all my journey ings, through all the
years of my itinerancy during which I required a
horse, I am glad to be able to say that the people
with whom I lodged, if they still survive, will bear
me witness that I never relegated to others the work
of feeding, grooming or harnessing the horse I used.
Those who pursue an opposite course from the love
of ease, and especially among new settlers, or those
who are pressed with their own work, oftentimes
bring upon themselves, unwittingly, reflections that
would be very unpleasant for them to hear.

In 1869 and 1870 Brother Robison, as well as
myself, had much to meet with that was trying to
patitnce and faith and hope. There were two set-
backs to the work which occurred during those years,
to which I will refer but briefly just here, and more
lengthily later on. First there was the locust plague,
the embarrassing results of which were still apparent
when he came. Such a pre-occupancy of thought re
the necessaries of life could not but prove very influ-
ential for ill in preventing the Word preached from
having " free course " in the minds of its hearers.
The fact that " the bread that perisheth " was so
scarce with many, drew away tlieir thoughts fre-
quently from the " Bread of Life " offered so freely
in the Gospel. This operated as a hindrance to the
good work. And then, secondly, and much worse
than the former, came that inexcusable agitation
which certain restless spirits caused by their misrep-
resentations of the arrangements made for the afore-
time asked-for transfer of the vast territory of the

THE ARRIVAL OF AN EFFICIENT HELPER.

all the
iiired a

people
ill bear
e work

I used,
-he love
r those
entimes
ns that

well as

y'^ng to

wo set-

3 years,

d more

plague,

•parent

irht re

influ-

from

carers.

v^as so

fre-

freely

worse

tation

isrop-

afore-

.f the

Hudson Bay Company to Canada, and the unreason-
ing uprising of the French half-breed portion of the
country's population, with the unprincipled Riel at
their head, to prevent the establishment of the Gov-
ernment decided on at Ottawa.

Notwithstanding these set-backs to our work, Mr.
Robison prosecuted his labors in visiting outposts ; in
keeping up his appointments; in working with his
people in erecting the churches already referred to,
and in visiting the sick and dying, especially in and
about Winnipeg, during a season when a distressing
and often fatal fever was sweeping away many who
had but recently arrived in the country. His special
evangelistic services in the two newly-built churches
were signally owned and blessed of God. Many were
" brought from darkness into a marvellous light," and
added to the Cliurch uf Christ. In the midst of this
great activity and usefulness, to ray great regret he
was led, I know not by what means, to decide on
retiring from the work in Manitoba, in order to pur-
sue a course of study in Victoria University at
Cobourg. Knowing, as I did, his attachment to the
people of his charge, and their strong regard for
him, and the grief his severance from them must
occasion, his decision came to me both as a surprise
and a cause of much anxiety. I urged a reconsidera-
tion of the question, and in view of all the facts —
especially as we had no one in the country at that
date fully competent to fill his place — earnestly
entreated him to remain at least a year or two longer
with those he had gathered into the fold of the Good

* ■*

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

Shepherd. Just at this crisis he was summoned by
his mother, then rapidly declining in health, to hasten
to her home that she might see him once more ere
she departed. This decided him to act promptly, and
in a few days he started upon his long and hazardous
journey across the prairies in a season of severe cold
and fierce storms. Could the dear ones at home have
known what exposure that journey would involve,
they would have hesitated to urge him to undertake
it. The long prairie trail from Winnipeg to Moor-
head was traversed by miserable stages, and but
irregularly, because of the deep snowdrifts, and the
railroads thence to St. Paul just then were badly
blocked, so that it was extremely difficult for him to
accomplish the journey. But, what was saddest of
all, the ending of the journey only brought to him
sore disappointment and grief — his mother had passed
away days before his arrival. This to our brother
was a severe blow, and one that called forth great
sympathy on his behalf. After several weeks in
Ontario, and due consultation with the Mission
authorities, he returned to Manitoba in time to
attend the Missionary Conference which was held
there in July, 1872. His decision remained un-
changed, and contrary to the entreaty of the friends
on his mission, and the advice of Drs. Punshon and
Wood and Mr. Fawcett and myself, he still pressed
his claim to take a course of study in college.

In all this Brother Robison had the courage of his
convictions, and was thoroughly honest, I doubt not,
and yet I am compelled to think to-day, as in the

THE ARRIVAL OF AN EFFICIENT HELPER.

loned by
o hasten
nore ere
)tly, and
izardous
rere cold
me have
involve,
idertake
o Moor-
and but
and the
re badly
►r him to
ddest of
to him
d passed
brother
th great
eeks in
Mission
Itime to
as held
ed un-
friends
on and
pressed

of his

^bt not,

in the

past, that in this persistence he unwittingly diverged
from his providential course, and realized, as many
who have erred in the same direction have done,
disappointment and ultimate failure. Under the
pressure he put upon himself in hard study and close
confinement at college, his health ere long gave way,
and after struggling along for a while, supplying the
work at a few points in Ontario, and battling heroic-
ally with diseased throat and lungs, he was compelled
to accept the inevitable. In the autumn of 1878,
when much enfeebled by disease, he decided to visit
Manitoba again, hoping that the invigorating air of
the higher altitude might prove helpful, and that
meeting again with those converts to Christ who
loved him as their spiritual father, he might possibly
afford comfort and help to them as well. Alas ! it
was too late. He stayed a night with us in Toronto,
on his way west, when it was painfully apparent
that his strength was unequal to the undertaking.
His rapid decline after reaching Manitoba led to a
speedy return home, where, after the wearisome jour-
ney, he arrived at length in great debility of body,
but joyful through hope, to await his Master's call.
On December 17th, 1878, the summons came, and my
former co-laborer in the West, and the faithful
servant of Christ, passed away from the loved ones of
earth and went to see "the King in His beauty."
Summoned to attend the funeral solemnities, I
preached a memorial sermon from, " Well done, good
and faithful servant," etc. "Blessed are the dead
which die in the Lord."
7

tjr

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98 MANITOBA MEMORIES.

A PECULIAR CORRESPONDENCE.

My correspondence was considerably increased by
letters asking for information, of which I will give
two specimens. A stranger asked me to furnish an
anxious enquirer with the names of all the tribes of
Indians living in British North America, the language
and dialects spoken by the same, the religious
denominations to which they belonged, the number
of souls in each tribe, the number speaking each
language, the numbers of each tribe belonging to each
Christian denomination, the number of pagans, and
the names of the districts inhabited by each tribe.
All these questions were also asked separately regard-
ing the Esquimaux ; and all this asked for simply,
as alleged in the letter, to gratify a desire to acquire
statistical information ! I also received the following
letter, which is given verb, et lit:

" Sir, — I depend upon you as a friend to give me a
correct statement of the Red river country and all
the parts you have travel through
And in particular the kind of Gaim let me know iff
the buffalo is as plenty as they formerly was
There is a lot of familyes would imigrate there in the
spring iff they could have the particulars of the
country and in particular about the crops -
plese state whether there is any deer or bear or wolves
and all kinds of wild animals and all kinds of fish
and state the climate and soil an what kinds of crops
there is this year and the markets and the mode of
living the people has and the best rout for going
there and what it would cost a young single man to

THE ARRIVAL OF AN EFFICIENT HELPER.

:eased by
will give
irnish an
I tribes of
language

religious
e number
:ing each
ig to each
bgans, and
ach tribe,
ly regard-
?r simply,
to acquire

following

go there Mention all kinds of fowl in particular it has
been a cold wet frosty summer here i would like to
know how much snow you had there last winter
there is a good many would like to know if there is
any rattle snakes there mention all kinds of snakes
sir if there is any thing not asked as we are inquiring
about the particulars of that country i trust you will
mention it Sir i trust you as a friend will answer this
letter direct to Ethell pos ofl5ce Ontario."

give me a
[y and all

know iff

lere in the
rs of the

lor wolves
Is of fish
of crops
mode of
for going
|e man to

1?i

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CHAPTER VL

TROUBLOUS TIMES.

Our efforts to prepare the foundations which I
had been trying to place in position for an enduring
superstructure, met with a very serious reverse in the
troublous times of 1869 and 1870. There were some
in the country at that date, as possibly there are now,
of the milk and water class, whose principles (?) would
not allow of their using the term rebellion in this
connection, and so they could only write or speak of
the " troubles " through which the Red River Settle-
ment was passing. Yet to many of us these troubles
were even more than troublesome, and the troublers
themselves none other than organized rebels, who,
having in a treacherous way possessed themselves
of power, were now using that power in terrorizing,
plundering and cruelly imprisoning many of Her
Majesty's loyal subjects, whose misfortune it was, for
the time, to be their fellow-citizens.

I should state here, preparatory to my remarks on
the insurrection, that the Government of the Province
of Assiniboia, of which the Red River Settlement was
a part, consisted of an elective Council, presided over
by the Governor of the Hudson Bay Territory, and

! i

TROUBLOUS TIMES.

101

\ which I
enduring
Tse in the
Yere some
i are now,
I (?) would
n in this
• speak of
er Settle-
e troubles
troublers
3els, who,
emselves
rrorizing,
of Her
was, for

larks on

Province

Iment was

lided over

tory, and

was recognized by })oth tlie Imperial and the Cana-
dian Government i. As I have already intimated,
Governor McTavish was at this time at the head of
the Council.

The beginning of the insurrectionary movements,
which so soon culminated in this miserable rebellion,
were seemingly too insignificant to be a reason for
alarm. Early in 1869 we were warned by our only
newspaper, the Nm'ivester, that an agitation was then
going on and gaining headway among a certain por-
tion of the people of the country (the French half-
breeds) on account of the proposed transfer of " The
Hudson Bay Territory," including the Province of
Assiniboia, to the Dominion of Canada, and the estab-
lishment, at an early day, of a Gov^ernment by the
authorities at Ottawa. This seemed at first all the
more incredible, inasmuch as a numerously signed
petition had been forwarded by the people to the
Canadian Parliament, as far back as 1857, asking that
the necessary preliminaries be arranged, as soon as
possible, for the bringing about of such a transfer ;
and, also, inasmuch as the supplies of food and seed
grain, which had been so generously sent forward by
Canada to prevent suffering and even starvation dur-
ing the famine season, and which had been partici-
pated in very largely and eagerly by these people,
were not yet exhausted. That they could cherish and
manifest so much ill-will toward the source of so
much of their greatly-needed relief did seem to many
in the country both incredible and ungracious.
Nevertheless it soon became only too apparent that

Xi^%

102

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I I

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I'll!

mischievous agitators were at work circulatinff
reports that w^ere as false as damaging, and that
many of the people, uninformed and unsuspecting,
were receiving these misrepresentations as true, and
were becoming greatly excited in view of the alleged
wrongs which, they were told, the Imperial Govern-
ment, the Hudson Bay Company and the Govern-
ment of Canada were conspiring to inflict upon thtir
country.

Emboldened by the countenance given him by
some, from whom better things might well have been
expected, and encouraged by the manifest influence
he w^as exercising over those among whom he was
operating, the leading spirit in this movement (so far
as was apparent ; I cannot vouch for what was going
on behind the scenes) openly summoned his fellow-
countrymen and co-religionists to meet from time to
time at their church doors at the close of the Sabbath
service and elsewhere, to listen to his exciting elo-
quence, as he harangued them anent the peril in
which their possessions and homes and altars and
liberties were becoming involved, urging the neces-
sity for concerted and pron)pt action on their part,
that they might be able to av ert these threatening
dangers. Those who have listened to Riel when
speaking on this hobby of his, and when at his best,
as he was in lcSG9, will readily admit that as a
speaker in his own language, addressing his own
people, he was possessed of marvellous power to
excite and dominate according to his pleasure.

The result of these public ettbrts, which probably

TROUBLOUS TIMES.

103

rculating
and that
ispecting,
true, and
le alleged
Govern-
Govern-
pon thtir

him by

lave been

influence

1 lie was

tit (so far

vas going

s fellow-

i time to

Sabbath

ting elo-

3eril in

ars and

le neces-

eir part,

eatening

el when

his best,

at as a

lis own

3wer to

)robably

he was aided in planning and executing by older and
wiser heads, very soon appeared in the organization,
in military form, of well officered companies, com-
posed well-nigh exclusively of French half-breeds,
and exclusively of his co-religionists, who were kept
well in hand by means of these frequent gatherings
and stirring appeals. When it became known that a
Government for these Territories had been outlined at
Ottawa, and a Lieutenant-Governor (the Hon. Wm.
Macdouixall) appointed, neither of which was accord-
ing to their liking, and that said Governor-elect,
with a party of officials, were on their way to
establish that Government, they speedily ranged
their forces in positions the most favorable to resist
and repel these audacious invaders.

Their fii*st step in open rebellion against the
Government and laws of the Province of Assiniboia
was taken on October 2l8t, 1869 — a few days after
Mr. Howe's mysterious visit had terminated — when
a large detachment of armed men, with their officers,
took possession of the highway of traffic, and at a
narrow pass noar Stinking River erected a large
cross, and proceeded to barricade that highway and
to stop all travellers and all trains of freighting carts
with their loads, subjecting them to a close examina-
tion and allowing none to pass except those having
permits from their head officials. In some cases
these loads of freight were allowed to pass on to
Winnipeg, but in others the property was declared
confiscated and appropriated to their own use. The
incoming supplies and furniture, with some small

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104

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

arms and ammunition, for the use of the Lieutenant-
Governor and his party were thus eagerly expro-
priated and appropriated. On October 25th, the
Governor and Council of Assiniboia met and urged
the leaders in this insurrection to cease their opposi-
tion to the incoming of ivlr. Macdougall, but to no
avail. A few days later, having become aware of
his arrival at Pembina, they despatched an officer
with a document, which was duly handed him, for-
bidding him to enter the Territory on any account
except by their permission. This prohibitory enact-
ment of theirs did not actually prohibit, for the party
crossed the boundary line and entered the Territory
not many hours later on, but having camped at the
Hudson Bay Company's trading post, were soon after
waited on in a threatening manner by a company of
armed and mounted guards, led by Lepine, who
warned them to leave the country by nine o'clock
next morning or take the consequences.

About eight o'clock next day the rebel party re-
turned, and with still more threatening demonstra-
tions declared that if they did not leave by nine
they would not answer for their lives, and proceeding
to arrest Mr. Hallett, who went with a message to
them, they tied him to a cart, forbidding him to
speak to any of the Governor's party. Finding him-
self in the midst of such unreasoning and determined
foes and utterly defenceless, Mr. Macdougall wisely
decided to retrace his steps across the boundary, and
await further developments at Pembina.

In thus refusing the right of the highway of travel

TROUBLOUS TIMES.

105

itenant-

expro-

)th, the

d urged

' opposi-

it to no

ware of

1 officer

lim, for-

account

y enact-

^e party

'erritory

d at the

►on after

pany of

e, who

o'clock

irty re-
lonstra-
)y nine
Iceeding
|sage to
I him to
ig him-
Irmined
wisely
y, and

travel

to the party, and expelling them from tie country
without giving any opportunity for such explana-
tions as the Governor might wish to make to the
people, these French half-breeds acted entirely on
their own responsibility, and as though they were
the sole occupants and owners of the country, or at
least as though they alone had the right or com-
petency to decide whether or not the residue of " the
people of the North- West" should have an oppor-
tunity of receiving any explanations whatever from
Canada through its appointed representative. They
never conferred, up to th?:.t date and prior to that
outrage, with the other and larger and more intelli-
gent and influential portions of the people in relation
to this matter; but treating the entire Protestant
population of English, Scotch and Irish half-breeds
and Canadians and Americans as if they were
nonentities, took it upon themselves to rush into
rebellion for the twofold purpose of preventing the
establishment of a Government such as the majority
of the people would have voted for if asked, and in
order to secure the establishment of a government of
their own with their " head centre " as governor. It
is true that subsequently to this expulsion of the
Lieutenant-Go rnor elect from the country, Riel did
consent to a conference between a few representatives
of the English-speaking Protestant population with
himself and an equal number of his confederates, in
which it was supposed the advisable would be freely
discussed; but as soon as these anti- insurrectionists
expressed a desire that Mr. Macdougall should be

V. ,

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(

f ' '

i\ <
1} 1

1 '

■1 I

I !'

106

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

brought into the country, that the intentions of
Canada might be explained to the people, he excitedly
and indignantly protested, affirming that " he could
only come in over their dead bodies," thus terminat-
ing very abruptly a conference which he never in-
tended for free discussion of the situation and free
action subsequently. On November 17th the Governor
and Council of Assiniboia met again and issued a
proclamation, duly signed, urging the insurrectionists
to lay down their arms and submit to the Queen's
authority, but these masters of the situation gave no
heed to the proclamation.

THE REBELS SEIZE FORT GARRY.

The seizure took place on November 3rd, 1869.
After having turned back the incoming Lieutenant-
Governor, Riel lost no time in making his position,
and that of his confederates, as secure and comfort-
able as possible, by taking possession of the fort, with
the enormous stores it contained, as the principal
receiving and distributing depot of the Hudson Bay
Company. This he accomplished without resistance
as he marched through the gate of the fort at the
head of one hundred and twenty- five armed half-
breeds, who forthwith took possession. And now
they were really masters of the situation so far as
the fort, and even the surrounding country, was
concerned ; for, being thus organized throughout
their settlements in companies embracing a totality
of fivu liundred or six hundred men, a hundred
and more of whom wore within the walls of Fort

TROUBLOUS TIMES.

107

Garry, and well equipped and supplied, as they had
never been before, with comfortable quarters, and
clothing and food, what could the unorganized and
unequipped loyalists, who were widely scattered,
reasonably hope to accomplish by any attempt they
might make in this wintry season of the year, to
dispossess them ?

Their first step when within the walls was to get
the cannon and rifles and ammunition now entirely
at their service — they had thirteen six-pounders and
four hundred Enfield rifles — into such positions in the
bastions and about the gateways as seemed to promise
the greatest availability and effectiveness in repelling
any attack that might be made. When the Chief
Factor in charge of the post asked Riel, " Why have
you brought all these men into the fort, and closed
the gates ?" he received the unsatisfactory reply, " To
protect the fort." " From what?" was asked. " From
all danger," was the only answer vouchsafed. This
rather unique seizure was accomplished so quietly,
and with such precautions, that the people of the
village knew nothing of what was occurring until
one of the clerks in the Hudson Bay Company's
store (a young Canadian), having taken in the situa-
tion, made a dash for the outside, spiking one of the
guns on his way, and leaping from the walls, soon
reported the fact, to the amazement of those who
were not in sympathy with the rebels. From this
date the tyranny of this well-fortified and well-
provisioned upstart tyrant was seen and felt, both
within and without the fort, for ten long montlis,

t.i

' i1'

! 1

108

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

until Colonel Wolseley and his expeditionary force
put in an appearance, on the morning of August 24th,
1870. Just prior to this capture of Fort Garry by
Riel and his following, a number of loyalists had
advised its occupancy and defence by themselves, but
for want of unanimity nothing was then attempted.

A COUNTER MOVEMENT

the

and good order had

interests

inception at this date, and on this wise : Mr. Mac-
dougall, still at Pembina, having been assured, on
what seemed most reliable authority, that the "trans-
fer " would take place on the 1st of December, pro-
ceeded on that day to issue his celebrated " Queen's
Proclamation," and also to commission Colonel Dennis
as his "Lieutenant and Conservator of the Peace
for the North- West Territories," authorizing him to
appoint officers and organize into companies, and
equip and drill for service, those loyalists who might
volunteer for the suppression of rebellion and the
re-establishment of peace. For a brief season this
enrolling of names went on briskly until some four
hundred men, mostly of the lower settlements and
Winnipeg, had joined in with the movement ; but a
feeling of discouragement became manifest as soon
as it was realized that no sufficient supply of the
munitions of war for this hastily extemporized force
was forthcoming, and, what was well-nigh as serious
a matter, that they were without that steady-handed
and able generalship which was essential to success
in such a critical time. As a consequence, there

TROUBLOUS TIMES.

109

was, ere long, a considerable falling away, until the
^ umber of those who were willing and ready to do
and to dare became ominously small. The " Con-
servator of the Peace," however, had about fifty
volunteers in quarters at the lower fort, to guard
it and its surroundings from rebel invasion. This, I
take it, was a wise precaution. But his next step
was not equally wise, for with an unaccountable
short-sightedness he placed about fifty or sixty
poorly-equipped and insufficiently-officered volun-
teers in an unprotectable position, to guard some
Government provisions, then in store in Dr. Schultz's
buildings, with the hope, no doubt, of imposing a
check thereby on the ambitious controller of affairs
in Upper Fort Garry. This movement, though well-
intentioned, was most impolitic and hazardous, and
soon proved very disastrous. These buildings were
quite within range of the fort guns, and easily sur-
rounded, and so, cut off* from all possible supplies of
wood and water, a circumstance quickly perceived by
the opposing force and utilized in order to a victory.
Colonel Dennis, still at the lower fort, feeling him-
self unable to afford relief, ordered them, we were
told, to " fall back " to a place of greater safety ; but
whether the order fell into the enemy's hands, or was
received and disobeyed, I know not, but this I was
compelled to know, that after being surrounded and
besieged for three days, they had no alternative save
one. To attempt to fight their way against such
odds would have been sheer madness, and so these
brave, loyal, but badly handled men were compelled

i: ■ I ■

I .

i. 5

110

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

to listen to the propositions of those who were
seeking to negotiate a surrender. In view of the
preparations being made at the fort for an assault
upon the buildings thus occupied, I decided, on the
morning of the 7th of December, to try to dissuade
Riel from an act which would certainly result in
much bloodshed, and also to secure, if possible, the
release of our son, who was one of the volunteers.
In my desperation, I presume I put the case before
him pretty urgently, receiving in return such brow-
beating and insulting language as was decidedly
trying to patience and self-respect, until, seeing an
opportunity as we neared the buildings, I beckoned
my son, and, unhindered by the surrounding guards,
we both made our way to our mission home close by.
Immediately I returned, and urged that others whose
families were in need of their help should be allowed
to leave at once, when he very indignantly dismissed
me with, " You are going too far ; this is my busi-
ness," etc. Thus repelled, I stood aside to witness
one of the saddest scenes I ever witnessed. At this
juncture, Riel was approached by Mr. Bannatyne, one
of the merchants of Winnipeg, and others, for the
avowed purpose of negotiating a cessation of hostil-
ities, on terms that might be agreed upon, and which,
after considerable delay, were made known and ac-
ceded to. These terms, we were informed, were that
the surrendering parties should " leave their guns,
ammunition, etc., in the buildings, and be marched
to the fort, and then allowed to go where they
pleased."

TROUBLOUS TIMES.

Ill

Some doubted the sincerity of the promise, but on
being assured, as we have been told, by Mr. Banna-
tyne that the agreement would be faithfully kept and
that he would personally guarantee all private pro-
perty, they surrendered. Pursuant to this agreement,
some fifty disarmed and anxious loyalists, with three
ladies — Mrs. (Dr.) Schultz, Mrs. (Dr.) O'Donnell and
Mrs. Mair, who accompanied their husbands — were
ordered into line and, surrounded by Kiel's guards,
wended their way into the fort, the gates of which
were closed upon them as soon as they entered,
revealing to them very quickly the painful fact that
they had been cruelly betrayed, and that now a very
uncertain fate awaited them. Undeniably the pro-
mise made by Mr. Bannatyne induced the surrender,
and as undeniably that promise was basely violated ;
but the question arises, Who in this instance was
the betrayer ? Was Mr. Bannatyne authorized by
Kiel to make it ? If so, then he was grossly imposed
upon ; and if not so authorized, then his course was
highly censurable. Certainly there was treachery
somewhere, and cruel disappointment and great and
prolonged suffering followed in due course.

bhey

A GLOOMY OUTLOOK.

After the surre ider there came to these betrayed
loyalists such indignities, privations and sufferings as
far exceeded all that the most timid among them had
feared before they passed within the walls of the now
rebel-ruled fort.

The personnel of these prisoners stood about as

5 1 !

iri

''4
Mil

112

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

follows : Several were married, with families either
in Ontario or the settlement, while others, perhaps
the majority, were bachelors ; but all alike had come
to the country intending to pursue their respective
professions or callings. Physicians, druggists, clerks,
mechanics and farmers were all represented, as was
proven after the days of their captivity ended, when
many of them sprang quickly to the front in social
and business circles — some taking up and holding
important positions in the community as medical
practitioners, merchants, magistrates, and others as
legislators. One, for whom Riel had nothing less
than death in store, became Lieutenant-Governor of
Manitoba ; while others distinguished themselves by
the ability and enterprise they have manifested in
matters commercial, political, educational and re-
ligious. Such, in brief, were the loyal men who
were kept for months caged up in the prisons of Fort
Garry, as if too vicious and dangerous to be allowed
their liberty. In regard to ecclesiastical preferences,
they were divided principally among the Episco-
palian, Presbyterian and Methodist Churches, with
two or three Roman Catholics ; a majority of them,
however, had attended our services either at Winnipeg
or at some out-appointment.

On the morning following the surrender I went at
an earlier hour, as seemed advisable, waiting for the
subsidence of the night-long pow-wow, in wiiich these
over-stimulated captors had indulged, to seek from
Riel permission to hold service with them on Sabbath
in such place as he might order. My application was

TROUBLOUS TIMES.

113

3 either
aerhaps
d come
ipective
clerks,
as was
1, when
i social
holding
medical
hers as
ng less
rnor of
ives by
sted in
nd re-
n who
3f Fort
illowed
rences,
Spisco-
with
them,
nipeg

mt at
)r the
these
from
Ibbath
In was

promptly and emphatically negatived : " No, you
cannot meet them altogether, nor speak to them, but
you may go and pray with them only, for they much
need to be prayed for." I was thankful for even that
much in the way of permission. Their condition in
their places of confinement, as I found to my sorrow
on that day, was indeed a most pitiable one ; no
description that I can give will convey an adequate
idea thereof to those whose good fortune it was
to neither experience nor witness it.

The prisoners were all at first located in the upper
flat of a two-storey building, ordinarily occupied by
the Hudson Bay Company's staff of accountants and
clerks ; the lower flat being used as offices, while the
five or six small rooms in the upper storey were their
Lleeping apartments, which opened severally into a
central corridor, reachable only by an outside stair-
way. This roomy corridor came into use as a " guard
room," while the five or six stoveless, bedless and
chairless rooms were packed with prisoners ; so
crowded in fact as to necessitate the breaking of a
pane of glass in each room to prevent suffocation, in
consequence of which the piercing winds and sting-
ing frosts came in upon them to their great discom-
fort, and the imperilling of health and even life.
No marvel that some became very ill as the result
of such overcrowding and exposure, and that several
contracted ailments from which they never fully
recovered. The crowded state of these rooms was
relieved somewhat by the removal of a number to
the little jail outside the walls, in which there was a
3

I'l •

114

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

court-room and several small cells, which were found,
as described by Mr. McVicar, to be '' very filthy and
crawling with vermin." The court-room was required,
of course, by the gentlemen " guards " who might be
on duty from time to time, and who frequently
became very uproarious through a free use of " Hud-
son Bay rum," greatly to the annoyance of the
prisoners in the cells. The food supplied to them
was mainly pemmican of poorest quality, and tea ;
which, however, was soon supplemented somewhat
by the kindness of certain loyal ladies in Winnipeg,
who prepared and sent baskets of bread, biscuits,
cooked potatoes, etc., which not only relieved hunger
but probably warded off disease. These much-needed
supplies wer« generally carried to the prisons by
Mr. Crowson, a deeply afflicted loyalist friend of
the prisoners, who was often annoyed and grieved
beyond measure at seeing much that he had with
such difficulty brought to their doors, snatched from
his baskets by these already well-fed bandits. As he
reported back these acts of unutterable meanness, we
all felt with him that these things were hard to bear,
and yet these true " sisters of charity," aided by this
" Christian brother " of the right stamp, continued
thus to minister to their imprisoned friends, while
there were such to be ministered to. Will not such
ministrations be remembered in two worlds ?

I availed myself of Kiel's permission to visit the
prison and pray with the prisoners, generally twice
during the week, and once each Sabbath morning,
always, however, under stx'ict surveillance — an armed

TROUBLOUS TIMES.

115

•e found,
I thy and
•equired,
night be
3quently
f " Hud-

of the
to them
md tea ;
)mewhat
'^innipeg,
biscuits,
i hunger
ti-needed
isons by
riend of

grieved
ad with

ed from
As he
|ness, we

to bear,

by this
fntinued
while

lOt such

lisit the
V twice
[orning,
armed

guard attending and standing by me during my
brief services in the different rooms. To be thus
closely watched while seeking to worship God was
to me a new and most unwelcome experience, and yet
I had to submit to it, not only in these prison exer-
cises, but also when visiting a sick lady — wife of a
prisoner — in her own home ; for even there, and not-
withstanding her severe illness, a rough fellow as a
" guard " invariably entered her room when I did,
and seating himself on the side of the sufferer's bed,
watched me while I besought the God of mercy for
" mercy and grace to help in that time of need." As
I recall these experiences to-day, I fear I was not
always as free from unkindly feelings toward these
men, nor as hopeful of doing them good, as I might
have been. Be that as it may, I will just here nar-
rate an incident reported to me years after by a sur-
veyor, who was just in from a remote settlement,
which may seem to have some bearing on this matter.
I give it as he gave it to me, without either vouching
for or questioning its correctness. He said : " I feel,
Mr. Young, that you should be told a fact that came
to my knowledge not long ago. It is this : The half-
breed guard who used to stand guard over you
during your services in the prisons in 1869 and 1870,
and who has recently died, when urged in his last
illness to have the priest brought, said to his friends,
' If you can bring Mr. Young, I should like him to
come and pray for me as I used to hear him pray
with the prisoners in Fort Garry.' " I was not sent
for, I am sorry to say, but I shall hope that this poor

if;

I i

116

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

man, who had but little light, was mercifully remem-
bered by the " Sufferer of Calvary," and so received
into Paradise when dismissed out of this life. I
should like to meet him in " the house of many man-
sions."

These short services of Scripture reading and
prayer, in these five or six different prison rooms,
were followed on each Sal^bath by my three regular
preaching services in this order, viz.: Our mission
hall, Winnipeg, 10.30 a.m. ; then a drive of six miles
and a service at 2.30 p.m. ; and then a drive of about
six miles more, and a service at 6 p.m., after which I
generally returned to Winnipeg, making a round trip
during the day of tv/enty-five miles, which was fre-
quently done in deep snow and in severely cold and
stormy weather.

.'1 *

I ,i 'I

. 'II

I t

remem-
received

life. I
ly man-

ng and
rooms,
regular
mission
ix miles
)f about
which I
ind trip
^as fre-
ak! and

CHAPTER VII.

ESCAPING FOR LIFE.

From the 7th of December, 18C9, to the 9th of
January, 1870, our suffering fellow-loyalists languished
in close confinement without indicating any intention
of attempting an escape ; but on the night of the 9th
a surprise was given their over-confident oppressors.
In the morning of that day, as on previous Sabbaths,
I conducted a short service with those in the outer
prison, and, going beyond Kiel's permission, left with
them a Bible and some tracts for their perusal.
During that night, which was severely cold and
stormy, ten of their number "broke jail," and struck
out into the darkness, to make their way, if possible,
over deep snowdrifts and across trackless prairies in
(|uest of liberty and safety. As may be supposed,
they were unsuitably clad for such an exposure, and
in consequence suffered much as they tramped their
weary way during that terrible night. One of them

— a Mr. H , from London, Ont., — was so badly

frozen as to be compelhMl to seek refuge in a house,
where he was recaptured and forced back into the
j)rison from which he had so recently escaped, while
the nine succeeded in reaching plnces of refuge in

■ ■ )

.i i

iii

118

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

either the lower or upper settlements. At a late hour
of night, one of the escaping men called on me to get
the money he had deposited with me for safe -keeping
at the time of the surrender, after which he heroically
started for distant Canada, an undertaking which
seemed, under the circumstances, most preposterous :
and yet he and many others preferred to brave the
hardships and perils that would be involved therein
rather than hazard liberty and life in a prolonged
imprisonment such as they had been enduring. How
this man accomplished that journey I know not ; but
he did accomplish it, and after the reign of terror was
ended, returned with his family and became a settler.
A coincidence, which was to me for a time the
occasion of some uneasiness, occurred on the night of
Sabbath, 23rd of January, 1870, when a more notable
escape was effected from one of the inner prisons.
After visiting the other prison-rooms in the morning
of that day, I had a short season of prayer with Dr.
Schultz, who, for reasons unknown to me, was then
in solitary confinement, and wlio asked me to favor
him with a Bible. As I had a few minutes before
designedly left one on the floor wliere I knelt in
another room, I reijuested the guard in attendance to
bring it and hand it to the doctor, which he did,
relieving me thereby of any responsibility in the mat-
ter. The coinci(^ence referred to came in just here
and in this wise : The escape of the ten men from the
jail outside followed my leaving them a Bible, and
now two weeks later the giving of another Bible to
another ])riH()ner was followed that same night by

ESCAPING FOR LIFE.

119

his escape also. When told of this sudden departure
without any leave-takinf^, it occurred to me that Kiel's
suspicions might be aroused, and that he might order
me into the room so unceremoniously vacated by my
friend. My fears, however, were not realized. When
the prison was found empty in the morning, and
the prisoner actually unfindable, there was no small
stir among the rebel rulers of tlie fort, and no little
wonderment and gladness among the loyalists both
within and without. At first it was supposed that
some of the guards had " taken the shilling " and
looked the other way, and that some friend in the
secret had been in readiness outside the walls with
horse and sleigh to expedite the escape ; but, as I
afterwards learned, all this guessing was at fault, and
that notwithstanding the many and great difficulties
in his way — e.g., the presence of the guard at his
door, the distance of the ground from his window, the
height of the fort wall, and the absence of such appli-
ances as would seem indispensable to his escape, as
well as the severity of the night and the distance to
a place of safety — yet he did most certainly, and
without human aid, make well his escape. Nor do I
know how to account for it, unless that the means at
his command, which seemed so utterly insufficient
(consisting barely of a small gimlet, pocket-knife and
buffalo-robe), were made effectual to his deliverance
by a Presence and a Power unseen by mortal eye.
With less nerve and determination he would have
abandoned all hope of escape after the severe injury
he received in falling heavily to the ground, from

120

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

the failure of either the gimlet or the buffalo-line
to bear his weight, and which . resulted in much
suffering and long-continued lameness. But " liberty
is sweet," and life still more so, and hence his per-
sistent efforts, despite his sufferings, to reach a place
of safety. Nor was his marvellous escape prema-
ture. I doubt not but that the same " council of
war " which subsequently, and with inhuman cruelty
and for no just cause, sent poor Thomas Scott to
his sudden death would, under similar pressure,
have voted the same sentence for Dr. Schultz had
he been still in their power ; for, after his escape,
Riel said to me, " The guards are out looking for
him, and they have orders to shoot him on sight."
His escape was not fully assured, however, until
after he, with his faithful friend and helper, Monck-
man, had completed their adventurous and toil-
some tramp of five hundred or six hundred miles
through the wilds then intervening between the Red
River of the North and Fort William. Snowshoeing
their way, and drawing along a little sled loaded
with scanty supplies of food and blankets, resting
over night occasionally in a friendly Indian's hut,
and sometimes by their camp-fire in the thicket,
they toiled on, crossing the ice-bound lakes and
rivers, as well as the vast uninhabited wilderi.jss
regions that were in their way until, after twenty-
four days of hard struggling, despite their scant fare
and the doctor's lameness, they once more crossed tlie
bounds of civilization. I still hold a letter wliich Dr.
Schultz wrote me from Fort Alexander, while making

ESCAPING FOR LIFE.

121

lUt,

cet,
ind

VSS

ty-
are
tlie
Dr.

ing

that wonderful journey, in which the true source of
the jruidance and help and the unceasing protection
he so much needed, was duly recognized and prayer-
ful remembrance earnestly solicited. As I now recall
the perils which were thus escaped twenty-seven
years ago, and then note the position he reached and
the work he was c^nabled to do for his country in
subsequent years, I think I see some at least of many
reasons why the hand of God was manifestly in this
history of deliverances.

A wonderful history was that ui my friend Di-.
Schultz. Our first meeting was on the wild prairif^s
somewhere between Georgetown and Fort Aber-
crombie, in 1868, he journeying towanl St. Paul and
I moving slowly toward Fort Garry. During my
early toils in Winnipeg I ever found him ready to
oblige me when he could do so. His loyalty to
Canada in the midst of the disloyal and in times of
peril needs no mention from me — his record through
the years that followed, as well as the positions to
which he wa? elevated by his country and (Jovern-
ment, his occupancy of the Lieutenant-Governorship
of Manitoba for so long a term, as well as the ricLly-
merited honor of knighthood conferred upon him, all
testify thereunto. His was for many years a life of
suffering. I doubt if much of it was not the result of
the injury he received while escaping from Fort
Garry, and the strain and exposure associated with
his wonderful journey through tlie wilderness. It
was not long after he had been relieved fi'om the
responsibilities of the Governorsliip, and vvhile in

122

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I i™! I>

i ■ ;

J1:H

;!( I

:i,»

(juest of relief from feebleness and disease in a foreign
country, that he received his dismissal from the life
that now is, and entered, as I firmly trust, into a
state of being where the " wicked cease from troub-
ling and the weary are forever at rest."

A second and more disastrous connter-nioveniient
than the one already recorded was inaugurated for
the relief of the prisoners who, despite all the
promises given by Riel for their release, were still
held in close confinement. The result was that
further humiliation and suffering were endured by
those participating therein. Some of the loyal people
of the western parishes, such as Portage la Prairie,
High Bluff, Poplar Point and Headingly, in conjunc-
tion with those of the " lower settlements," unable
longer to endure the painful suspense in which they
had been kept waiting, moved simultaneously for a
grand rally at some central point, that should serve
both as a demonstration and an opportunity for
consultation and concerted action along the line of
persuasive measures for the relief of their friends.
Some seventy or more true and brave loyalists vol-
unteered their services, and proceeded, under com-
mand of Major Boulton, toward the point of general
rendezvous. As their line of march led through the
White Horse Plains neighborhood, where disloyalty
predominated and from whence Riel had drawn a
large number of his " guards," their movements were
at once observed, and quickly reported to their
leaders in Fort Garry, who forthwith called in all
available reinforcements, so that by the time Boulton

Escaping fou life.

123

and his poorly-equipped little force passed by for
Kildonan, a force of five hundred or six hundred
well-armed men was in readiness to defend their
stronghold and repel its assailants. These western
loyalists were joined at Kildonan on February 15th
by a much larger number of Canadians and natives,
who had also volunteered for active service. And
now the question, " What persuasive measure shall
we resort to in order to secure the result at which we
are aiming ? " I suppose, came under anxious con-
sideration. But while they were thus deliberating
and resolving and re-resolving, a most deplorable
occurrence took place in the neighborhood of the
camp, involving the slaying of an estimable and
promising youth, connected with one of the principal
families of the parish. The attendant circumstances,
as reported, were as follows: A half-breed, thought
to be a spy sent by Riel, was arrested and brought
into camp, who, watching his opportunity, ' ide a
dash for liberty, snatching a loaded gun as he ran.
Just as his fleet pursuei's were overhauling him, most
unfortunately he was met by young Sutherland, who
was riding toward the camp, but not in any way
participating in the movement ; whereupon, sup-
posing that he was going to aid in his capture, or
else hoping to expedite his escape by securing the
horse, the half-breed fired on him, inflicting wounds
that proved fatal in a short time. This was one of
the saddest outcomes of this most unfortunate counter-
movement. Taking place, however, just when it did,
it may have liad some bearing on the decision soon

124

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I ''

after reached, to pursue the more pacific course of
sending a message to Riel, instead of making an
immediate attack on the fort. Be that as it may,
a message was soon sent demanding the release at
once of all the prisoners, which was followed by
several interchanges, until an arrangement was
entered into securing the release demanded, and also
involving the disbanding and peaceable return to
their homes of the volunteers on the following day.

In the early morning of February 17th, 1870, these
western men, as a part of the force thus disbanded,
" struck camp," tied up their few belongings (blankets,
buffalo robes and food for the journey), and, sup-
posing that they were " homeward bound," joyously
faced the west, hoping soon to meet their released
friends and return to their own pleasant and peaceful
firesides. But a great disappointment was before
them, and ere it was noonday it was realized by them.
That they might not on their return pass oftensively
near the fort, they had agreed (it was said by Kiel's
request) to diverge from the travelled road, just north
of Winnipeg, and strike across tlie untracked prairies,
to the Portage la Prairie trail, making a detour of
about two miles. It was doubtless well known to
Riel that there were ravines then completely filled
with snowdrifts, which it would be difficult to cross.
The sequel seemed to indicate his object in making
the request, and tliat those who complied therewith
were treacherously and humiliatingly outwitted.
While I was watching their slow and toilsome move-
ments, as men and horses were struggling through

ESCAPING FOR LIFE.

125

these snow-filled ravines, I was greatly surprised and
distressed by the rushing from the fort of a large
number of armed guards, mostly mounted, who, with
their usual accompaniment, the terrifying war-whoop,
struck for a point where they could head off and
surround the returning party. Some, it was said,
were disposed to resist, but this seemed useless, as
many of them where without arms, and besides, they
were told by those in command of their assailants
that Riel simply desired them to call at the fort and
see him before their return home. After reluctantly
complying and entering the fort, the gates were closed
upon them, as was the case in the surrender of Decem-
ber 7th, and they were forthwith declared prisoners,
and their horses, sleighs and property seized and con-
fiscated, while they were hustled into the very prisons
from which their friends had been liberated only a
day or two before. What a complete reversal of cir-
cumstances ! These men, at risk of liberty and life,
came for the deliverance of others, and succeeded,
and now they were themselves in need of deliverance.
But whence, and how, and when that deliverance
should come was a problem none of us could solve.
My duties* within the fort, which I had hoped were
ended, were now considerably augmented, and that,
too, for a very uncertain period — duties, as ere long
appeared, involving greater trials of patience and faith
and fortitude than I had faced aforetime. A reign of
terror, including tyranny and cruelty far exceeding
what had been already endured, was now seemingly
established, and what the end would be no one could
predict.

Iff 1' i

; j||

:i' i

I
i

126

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

It soon became evident, however, that Rial was not
disposed to regard all these prisoners with equal dis-
favor, and that while all were at the outset subjected
to harsher treatment than were their predecessors,
some were predestined by him to much severer pun-
ishment than others. Of these, Boulton, Scott,
Powers, McLeod and Parkei occupied foremost posi-
tions, and Major Boulton was the first to receive
special attention. The " council of war," it was said,
met at once, and decided that he was guilty of trea-
son and should be shot, whereupon Kiel sentenced
him to be shot at noon the next day. Archdeacon
McLean was sent for to minister to the now con-
demned man, and his intercessions were so far re-
garded that the execution was postponed until mid-
night, Riel declaring that he would yield no further
mless Dr. Schultz should be recaptured in the mean-
time, in which case he would be shot instead. It was
also reported that up to 10 p.m. of the 19th of Febru-
ary no consent for the sparing of his life was obtained,
and then only by the importunities of Commissioner
Smith (now Sir Donald) and the Archdeacon, and
their promise to proceed, even at that midnight hour,
to the lower settlements and persuade, if possible, the
people to fall into line and elect representatives to the
" Assembly " that Riel was intent upon having estab-
lished ; then, and not till then, did he so far yield as
to suspend that terrible sentence, awaiting results,
declaring, at the same time, that •* On your success
depenc's the lives of the Canadians in the country."
The efforts of their intercessors proved successful, and

i: I

ESCAPING FOR LIFE.

127

for that reason only, so far as I know or believe,
Major (now Senator) Boulton escaped the bullets which
Kiel's guards, on the vvord of command, would have
sent through his he«,rt on their mission of death.

And yet a more horrible tragedy, that we could not
avert, has to be recorded.

As a connecting link, the following letter of mine
to the Guardian will not be deemed out of place :

" Winnipeg, Red River, Jan. 22nd, 1870.

"My Dear Mr. Editor, — Events of considerable
importance have transpired in connection with the
revolutionary movements in this country, since the date
of my last communication. A gentleman who landed
here a few weeks ago, and reported himself at Riel's
headquarters, to which he was conducted, as Mr.
Smith, an official of the Hudson Bay Company, despite
the watching and guarding to which he has iDeen sub-
jected, — (and he has had two or more guards charged
with that duty, and has not been outside of the fort
since his arrival) — has become developed into a real
(and, if you will) ' live ' commissioner, duly appointed
and fully accredited by His Excellency the Governor-
General of Canada. On the arrival of Mr. Smith and
Mr. Hardisty, another official of the Hudson Bay Com-
pany, and his travelling companion and guide, they
were both taken into the office of 'President' Riel,
where they were closely catechized as to their business
here and any papers in their possession ; whereupon
Mr. Smith assured the catechizer that he had not
in his possession, at that time, any documents except
such as he would show him ; and suiting the action to
the word, he opened his desk for his inspection. Of
course nothing contraband was found. After remain-
ing quiet for some two weeks he seems to have

128

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

1' I '

; t

deemed it time to be * up and doing,' and accordingly
it is said he intimated to Mr. Kiel that he was noiv
under instructions to inform him that when he should
have permission to do so, he had certain things to say
to him from the Governor of Canada, and also certain
documents at Pembina which he would like to pre-
sent. This information, I doubt not, took our little
Napoleon by surprise ; but as he keeps his wits
generally about him, Riel directed, I understand, a
guard to accompany Hardisty and bring in the papers.
In the meantime some of the most influential and in-
telligent and brave of Kiel's counsellors and army
had become * enlightened ' ('tis not necessary to say
how), and a goodly number of this class, we are told,
set out to meet the party returning with the papers,
and having met them, forthwith demanded the prized
documents, and took the guard and all under their
charge. Proceeding towards Fort Garry they met
Riel, who, not going about his business as they thought
he should, it is said one of his French fellow-religion-
ists placed his revolver to his presidential head, and
hinted that he must be careful how he acted or he
would send him where he would not care to go.
Arriving at the fort, some thirty or forty of the loyal
French, with some others, were there to receive and
guard the papers, and to insist that the commission
of Mr. Smith should be made public, and these
messages or proclamations, whatever they were,
should be read and made known. After a good deal
of parleying, and some sharp hints from the * seceders,'
Riel, I am told, consented, though reluctantly, that a
* mass meeting ' should be called, when Mr. Smith
should explain his mission and read his papers. On
Tuesday last, at noon, a large number of both parties
assembled in the fort, in the open air, and although
the thermometer was 20° below zero, yet there they
stood, till 5 o'clock, trying to learn all about a matter

ESCAPING FOR LIFE.

129

in which they felt a deep interest. It is doubtful if
a gentleman so perfectly gentlemanly as is Mr. Smith,
and representing a Government of so much import-
ance, and having the best and kindliest of aims for
the country visited, was ever so cross -questioned and
badgered as he patiently and good-humoredly sub-
mitted to be on that occasion, for the sake of peace
and this country's good. He was treated all through
the early part of the meeting as if suspected of being
a mere pretender with the worst of intention.

" When he read a letter of instruction from Sir
John Young, signed simply 'John Young,' he was
roughly asked 'Who is John Young?' 'Why does
he not sign his name as Governor, then V As the
day was ending and the business of the meeting not
completed, it was decided to adjourn until the day
following, — whereupon a Mr. Burke called the atten-
tion of the meeting to the state of the prisoners, who
for nearly two months had been kept in close confine-
ment, and urged their release that evening. His
language was earnest, and I presume by a portion of
the French guard understood, for directly the abomin-
able Indian war-whoop was heard, and off they rushed
to their guns and bayonets. With a few threats and
a good deal of noivSe the excitement passed off. The
next day a larger number of people came, and a
greater number of guards were under arms, but the
meeting was quiet. Mr. Smith had fewer interrup-
tions and received kindlier treatment. The documents
were read and well received by the people. The
liberal policy, declared to be that which the Govern-
ment intended to have adopted, took all by surprise,
and made some, I judge, regret that anything had
been done by them to keep such a Government from
being established. The meeting ended with this
immediate result — each class, that is of English and
French people, to appoint tiventy delegates to meet

III

130

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

next Tuesday to deliberate on the matters brought
under their notice by Mr. Smith. When this council
shall have done its work I hope to write you again.
I send you herewith a copy of our new * annexation '
paper, which contains a report of the meeting referred
to, and also the different communications from Eng-
land and Canada which it was our privilege to have
had read to us by Mr. Smith ; in regard to whom I
may here state, that throughout he has managed this
very delicate business with great prudence and tact,
and yet in a very straightforward and honorable
manner. The scheme of annexation to the United
States, which this paper has undertaken to ' write up,*
does not meet with approval even among the French
people. It is stated that even Riel must ' cold-
shoulder ' that scheme, or be cold-shouldered by his
former friends, and furthermore it is rumored that
the paper in (i[uestion will be very apt to back down
a little on that scheme ere long. But rumors here
are the veriest uncertainties, aud especially now.
The prisoners, poor fellows, are still held in their
close quarters, constantly expecting to be allowed to
go about their business, and yet daily doomed to sore
disappointment. Dr. Schultz's property, it is said, is
wasting away, and not very slowly either, especially
certain casks of what has been called ' distilled dam-
nation,' which some of those who have been repre-
sented as having sworn not to touch the intoxicating
cup are now using freely for other than ' medicinal
purposes.' Business matters are as stagnant as ever,
and many intend to emigrate in spring if there is not
a speedy and satisfactory settlement of these ' vexed
(juestions.' The winter is more severe than the last
was, though tlie snow is only about a foot deep."

CHAPTER VIII.

THE CLIMAX OF CRIME AND CRUELTY.

lam-
pre-

5ver,
not

last

The criminality and cruelty of Riel and his " coun-
cil of war " reached a most deplorable and never-to-
be-forgotten climax in that bloody tragedy which
they enacted on March 4th, 1870. After disposing of
Major Boulton to his satisfaction, and making all the
capital possible out of the case, Riel proceeded forth-
with to give special attention to another of those he
had recently captured, toward whom, for reasons
never clearly defined, he was harboring feelings of
intense hatred and cherishing purposes of the utmost
barbarity. I refer to that brave and loyal young
Irishman — the unfortunate Thomas Scott. In a
former chapter I stated that he was one of the ten
who escaped from the outer prison on the night of
December Oth, 1869, and also referred to his volun-
teering in association with Boulton's Portage Com-
pany, forty-eight of whom were so treacherously
enti'apped and thrust into prison on February 17tli,
1870. Thus he was twice a prisoner, and yet in
neither instance taken under arms. When first
arrested he was bearing a re(|uest to 'liel tliat the
ladies then resident in ])r. Schultz's besieged build-
ings should be permitted to retire therefrom, as tliey

132

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

were suffering from prolonged excitement and alarm.
The request was refused and he was forthwith shut
up in prison. His second arrest was, if possible, still
more treacherously ef oted, inasmuch as he, with the
forty-eight already referred to, had disbanded and
were returning peaceably to their homes pursuant to
an agreement with E-iel, and in full confidence of
being unmolested, when they were suddenly surprised
in their helplessness, and then decoyed into the fort,
when the trap was sprung and their imprisonment
entered upon. I am the more desirous of emphasiz-
ing this fact, inasmuch as false and damaging repre-
sentations have been widely circulated, designed to
excuse the severity of his punishment. It has been
stated, e.g., that in order to secure his release from
prison he took what amounted to an oath of allegi-
ance to Riel, violating which he rendered himself
liable to the punish meiit that followed. Unhesitat-
ingly I pronounce this a malicious misrepresentation
and vilification. He was never . oleased from prison
except by self-help, and never took an oath of any
description of Kiel's proposing.

On Sabbath, February 27th, while visiting the vari-
ous prisons, I was pained to learn that Scott had
been sent into solitary confinement, and going at once
to his room, found him in a most pitiable condition —
a dirty and fireless room, a single blanket to rest on
or wrap himself in, and witli manacles on both wrists
and ankles. No marvel that he shivered and suffered
under such circumstanc s. On my asking if he knew
the reason of this incJ'cased severity, he assured me

had
once
ion —
st on
vrists
ffercMl
knew
1 uiu

THE CLIMAX OF CRIME AND CRUELTY.

138

tliat he did not, and readily pronused to carefully
avoid, in action and utterance, whatever might l)e
offensive to the guards. After our season of worship,
with much anxiety concerning his fate, I passed on
to meet others who were awaiting a pastoral call. On
the evening of March 3rd, just after returning home
from an appointment in the country, I was surprised
by a call from one of the guards, who requested me
to accompany him to the fort, as I was wanted there,
and when asked for what, replied that Riel had
sent for me as a man named Scott was to be shot at
noon on the morrow, and that he wished to see me at
once. Promptly obeying this startling summons, I
was soon by the side of the condemned man, who, as
we conversed freely re probabilities, said, " I believe
they are bad enough to shoot me, but I can hardly
think that they dare do it ; " to which I replied that
" the only safe course for us both would be to act on
the asbjmption that the sentence would be carried
out," to which he readily assented. In his so-called
trial, before the seven members of the council of war,
Riel acted as prosecutor, witness and judge, and
when Scott objected that he did not know what he
was accused of, as he did not understand the language
used by them, he was simply told that he Wfts " a
very bad man and must die." Learning these facts
from the prisoner, and wishing to ascertain if possible
Kiel's intentions, as well as to remonstrate as best I
could, I proceeded to his headijuarters in the fort,
but failing to obtain an interview return-jd immedi-
ately to the prisoner to render such help as might be

Mi^

11 1

134

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

possible by counselling, encouraging and praying
with him as he groped his way toward the light and
faith and hope now so absohitely essential as a
preparation for the sudden termination of his pro-
bationary life. It was wickedly stated in communi-
cations which appeared in certain partisan political
Quebec papers, sent evidently by Riel or some of his
accomplices, that I found him indifferent, and that
my ex )rt^(ions and prayers were unheeded until
" Riel . ad some two hundred of his guards, moved
with pious solicitude, knelt in prayer that God would
give him repentance, after which, as was soon known,
he became contrite."

I cannot affirm that no such prayer-meeting was
held by this devout (?) " president " au J his guards,
many of whom were in a state of semi-intoxication
at that hour ; but I do affirm that Mr. Scott was from
the first most attentive to my ministrations, and, so
far as appeared, contrite in spirit and earnest in
prayers for the needed mercy and grace which, I
trust, was granted him. At a late hour he suggested
that I should retire and seek rest and return early in
the morning, and that he would write to his mother
and brother in the meantime. To this I consented,
offering, however, to stay witii him to the last if he
preferred me to do so.

Quite early in the morning I went in quest of co-
operation from several persons who seemed friendly
to Riel, hoping to bring such pressure to bear as
would lead him to spare Scott, as he had Boulton,
but this effort availed nothing. They one and all

■'

THE CLIMAX OF CRIME AND CRUELTY.

13o

regarded it as a " scare " only, and did not interfere.
I then waited on Mr. Commissioner Smith, who
consented at once to go to Riel and remonstrate and
plead, suggesting, however, that I should go first,
and if I failed, send a message and he would do his
utmost in behalf of the prisoner. Gaining the hearing
desired, I was informed by Riel that the sentence
would be executed, whereupon I urged, in effect, as
follows : " He is now powerless as your prisoner.
His life spared can endanger no one ; and what has
he done to render it proper for you to take away his
life ? " His reply was quite emphatic and to this
effect : " He is a very bad man, and has insulted my
guards, and has hindered some from making peace ;
so I must make an example to impress others and
lead them to respect my government, and will take
him first, and then, if necessary, others will follow."
I then urged for delay, at least for a day more, that
I might have more time with him, saying, " It is
dreadful to send a soul so suddenly into eternity."
But finding this of no avail, I sent a messenger to
Mr. Smith, as arranged for, while I returned to my
sad duty in the prison. Riel was urged by him with
pressing importunity to spare his life, even " for the
sake of One who died for us all." But Riel continued
unmoved, notwithstanding the touching allu.«:on.

The eleventh hour had now come, and as we were
engaged in spiritual exercises, Scott inijuiring and I
answering, and both pleading with God for the mercy
and grace so much needed, we were interrupted and
startled by the entrance of several guards, who were

■;«;'

) I

180

MANITOBA MEMORIKS.

sent to bind and blindfold the prisoner and to lead
hi;n out to the place appointed for his execution.
All hopes for deliverance vanished at once. At my
request the guards withdrew for a few minutes to
allow us another opportunity for prayer, but this
delay gave annoyance to Riel, who came to the door
vociferating his reproofs and orders as if intent on
hurrying up the execution or murder about to be
perpetrated. The only request made by Mr. Scott
was to be permitted to bid his fellow-prisoners "good-
bye," which being granted, and as I led him to their
rooms and opened the doors, he with wonderful calm-
ness and tenderness said, " Good-bye, boys," after
which we were conducted down the outside stairway
and through the east gate of the fort to the spot
where the sentence w^as to be carried out. As we
were moving slowly forward, the following words
were uttered by him, which I can never forget, and
have often repeated since that sad hour, "This is
horrible ! This is cold-blooded murder. Be sure to
make a true statement." Twenty-seven years have
elapsed, and on many a platform and frequently
through the press I have tried to obey, as I am now
obeying, that solemn injunction. At my request we
were again allowed a brief season of prayer, and
kneeling in the snow w'e unitedly lifted our hearts to
God for help in this time of special need. " Can you
now trust in Christ for salvation ?-" I asked. To my
great comfort he replied, " I think I can." And
after advising him to remain kneeling, and by his
request placing the blindfolding cotton more directly

•' -.

jii

a.
I

f H !

2. M ^ r-

^5 > = o

2 = ^5

fr O T =

.« s -

ft . —

_ a

•jr.

>
r

H
H

Pi'il

THE CLIMAX OF CRIME AKD CRUELTY.

137

over his eyes, we bade each other a solemn " good-
bye." Immediately after, I spoke to the captain com-
manding the firing party, urging him to spare his life
at least a day longer. I was told promptly, " His
time is come and he must die," and then speaking to
O'Donohue I said, " I know you have the power to
stay the execution for a day longer. Will you not do
so ? It is dreadful to send a soul into eternity with
so little time for preparation." He admitted that it
was, but simply said, " It is very far gone, and did
not interfere. The poor, brave loyalist was then
placed in such a position as they desired, a few yards
east of thv^ present track of the street railway, when
he again knelt in the snow, and then, at the signal
given, several rebel bullets were sent on their
mission of death, into and completely through his
breast, causing the snow to be stained and saturated
with his heart's blood, while his spirit quickly passed
from the presence of his murderers to the presence of
God. Immediately after the firing I approached the
prostrate body, then quivering in death, and saw a
half-drunken guard fire a revolver at his head, as he
held it quite near, after which all seemed to be over.
Thus it was, in brief, that those w^ho were responsible
for this tragedy reached a terrible climax in crime
and cruelty.

A rumor was circulated in a day or two that Scott
was not dead when the body was placed in the box
called a coffin, and was living five hours later, when
he was put to death by Riel and one of his guards in
the bastion to which he had been removed. This

• I'll

t
, E,

I ■

I? '

1.%

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

intimation was made to mc on the evening of the
murder by the editor of the Neio Nation, a paper
that was started in the interests of the rebels, and
designed by many of its supporters, I have ever
believed, to favor annexation to the United States.
It was decidedly anti- Canadian in its spirit and influ-
ence. At the time I disbelieved the rumor utterly, in
view of what I had witnessed at the shooting, and
also because of the large quantity of blood which
saturated the snow where he fell and struggled.
However, long after the New Nation ceased to exist,
its former editor, Major Robinson, made a statement
in the St. Paul Press, to the effect that Scott was not
only shot by order of Riel, but that, after his body had
been pierced by the balls of the flring party, he was
fastened up, still living, in his coffin. I quote from
the article referred to as follows :

" Major Robinson stated that he could not credit
that the deed of blood had been actually perpetrated,
and expressed his incredulity. Seeing this, President
Riel asked him to come with him, and led the way
into the court and to one of the sheds which lined the
interior of the walls, where there was a sentry. Riel
and his companion approached, and the former threw
open the door, exposing the fatal box, from which the
blood dripped into the snow. Hardly had he realized
this grim fact, when Major Robinson was horrified to
hear a voice, proceeding from the box, or coffin, in
anguished but distinct tones exclaim : ' Oh, let me
out of this ! My God ! How I suffer ! ' With blood
curdling in his veins, he retreated from the spot.
Riel called the sentry, and the two entered the shed
and closed the door. A moment later there was the

THE CLIMAX OP CRIME ANt) CRUELTY.

l.*^0

sound of a shot within, and the murdered man was
probably released from his torture. Riol rt u'ned
with the major to the fort, where he dismissed him
with a significant warning to secrecy. To compre-
hend the full horror of this tragedy it must be
remembered that this last incident of Scott's life
occurred five hours after he had been shot and cof-
fined, and with the thermometer many degrees below
zero."

On March 5th, the day following the tragedy, I
wrote Scott's brother in Toronto, and, as it may be
noted, very cautiously, for the outgoing and incoming
mails were tampered with by this unprincipled
tyrant, who, I knew, would not hesitate to put me
along with those in prison if I gave the least ground
of offence.

in
me
ood
pot.
hed
the

" To Hugh W. Scott, Esq. :

" My Dear Sir, — It is my very painful task to con-
vey to you intelligence of the most heart-rending
description. I promised your late brother, Thomas,
in his last hours, to writv^ you, and give you a true
statement of all that he was charged with, and his
trial and end. It will be proper for me to delay
giving that statement for a little, as it might not be
allowed to pasM out with the mail, and might also
involve me in unpleasantness.

" Let me then express my deep sympathy for you
and your bereaved family in this sore trouble. As
you know, pic^bably, already, your brother was taken
prisoner by Mr. Riel in December last, and made
his escape after many weeks' imprisonment. But,
joining another company of volunteers, he was again
captured with forty-seven others. The day before

140

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

1/1

1 ■'

i'! 1

I ^1

yesterday he was singled out and tried for these
offences, as well as for ' insulting Mr. Riel and the
guards by something he said ' — which he positively
denied— and was sentenced to be shot at noon next
day. I was sent for as a minister who had visited
the prisoners regularly, and was known by him.
During the evening I stayed with him, giving instruc-
tions and exhortations, and engaging frequently in
prayer. He was deeply penitent and earnestly
prayerful before God. Next morning I went again
and begged personally of Mr. Riel, and got Commis-
sioner Smith to do the same. We urged one day more
to be given him to prepare. But alas ! all in vain.
I was with him to the end. He prayed fervently —
said ' it was dreadful to put him to death ' — but
expressed a hope of salvation. He was led out a
few feet from the walls of Fort Garry, where again
he knelt in the snow and prayed — remaining on his
knees until the fatal shots were given. Poor Thomas !
many tears were shed for thee, but in vain.

" I have begged the body which Riel intended to
bury in the fort, and I think, through others helping,
we shall get it, when we intend burying it at the
Presbyterian churchyard, five miles below this. . . .
If we should get the body interred in time for the
mail, I will write again and enclose with this. May
God sustain and comfort you. I do believe Thomas
is saved. " G. YouNG.

" Winnipeg, March 5th, 1870."

Mr. Hugh Scott replied to my letter of the 5th of
March on the 8th of April as follows :

" Toronto, April 8th, 1870.

" Rev. and Dear Sir, — Your esteemed favor of 5th
ult. I duly received, and although containing news of

his

>th
of

THE CLIMAX OF CRIME AND CRUELTY.

141

the most painful description — yet news which tilled
my soul with gladness — I cannot convey to you in
words my heartfelt thanks for the kind and Christian
interest which you manifested towards my late
brother. May God reward you for it.

" Sad indeed to me was the fate of my poor brother,
but that was forgotten in the joy at the liopes of his
soul's salvation. Your kindness shall live in my
memory while life shall last. I am satisfied that you
did your duty as a Christian friend and minister.
What consolation it will be to his aged father and
mother when they read your letter.

" I hope and trust that you are safe from the
attacks of these ruffians and murderers, and that no
hurt will befall yourself or family.

" I shall be very glad to hear from you when you
find it convenient to write. Just enclose a note as
you did before. Thomas had some photographs which
I should like to get if possible, but I suppose all was
taken from him. I may mention that his cruel
murder has aroused the feeling of all the loyal
people in the Dominion, and all are anxious of
having the opportunity of avenging it. I also shall
not make my letter any longer, as Mr. Clark has
kindly consented to enclose it with his, but hoping to
hear from you soon and ag?un asking you to accept
my best thanks for your kindness and love,
" I remain,

" Your faithful and esteemed friend,
*'HuGH Scott."

Mr. Hugh Scott, whose letter I have given, lost his
reason after the death of his brother. I visited him
when in the asylum, but, poor fellow, his mind was so
wrecked as to forget that he had ever had a brother
called Thomas, and ere long he passed away, and, I

n ■' t

111'.'

142

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

.1 '

iti

» (

I \ >

ll'!

trust, entered upon a life where the mind will never
become unbalanced.

MRS. SCOTT's request.

Before his deatli liis aged mother in Ireland wrote
her daugl'ter-in-law, wife of the afflicted man, the
following very touching letter :

" Dear Daughter, — I am very glad to hear of the
Rev. Mr. Young calling to see my poor son. I would
desire that Mr. Young should attend his funeral
if it is the Lord's will to take him ; and if I may not
be permitted to meet him on earth, as it seems I lever
shall, may we all meet around the throne in heaven,
where parting is no more ; and I shall ever feel
grateful to Mr. Young for his kind services to my
poor son Thomas in Red River. I have thanked God
many times that there was a minister in that place to
attend to my poor son before his death : and I shall
ever bear a fond remembrance of Mr. Young on my
heart while I live. Poor Tliomas ! There was no
father, mother, brotlier or sister with him in his
djnng hour, but there was the all -seeing eye of Him
who is ever near to those who put their trust in Him.
May God be with us all and enabk us to submit to
His will."

A short while before tlie death of her son at the
Asylum in Toronto, Mrs. Scott was called to lay aside
her heart-breaking sorrow and enter into rest.

A FEW " IN MEMORIAM " REFERENCES.

Tliese must l)e very brief, l)ecjiuse of my scanty
store of needful facts. I am glad, however, that I
have enough of these to show that Scott was not thus

THE CLIMAX OF CRIME AND CRUELTY.

143

nil.
to

he
ude

nty
t I

lUS

treated by Riel for any justifiable cause. Among
his papers which I forwarded to his brother, Hugh
Scott, of Toronto, were many commendatory letters
of introduction, with certificates of good character,
from Sabbath-school teachers and the Presbyterian
min'.ster with whose church he had been connected in
Ireland, as well as from employers whom he had
served faithfully. I ([uote one entry which appeared
in his journal, made on Queen'3 Birthday, 1869,
which is peculiarly admonitory : "Brother and I
were out rowing on the Bay (Belleville). I wonder
where we shall both be ten years from to-day ? "
Alas, poor fellow, before ten months had passed away
his lifeless body, in its shroud of chains, was resting
on the bottom of the Red River of the North !

Captain Rowe, of Madoc, Ont., to whose company
he had belonged, thus described him in his report to
Colonel Brown, in command of the regiment : " I have
to inform you that the unfortunate man, Scott, who
has been murdered by that scoundrel, Riel, was for a
time a member of my company, and did duty witli
the battalion at Sterling in 1868. He was a splendi<l
fellow, whom you may possibly remember aa the
right-hand man of No. 4, and I have no hesitation in
saying, the finest-looking man in the battalion. He
was about six feet two inches in height, and twenty-
five years of age. He was an Orangeman, loyal to the
backbone, and a well-bred, gentlemanly Irishman."

It is a significant fact, which makes his nnu'der
wear a blacker aspect, that all wluj knew Scott were
favorably impressed by his manliness and courtesy.

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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Mr. Charles Mair, who frequently shared his blanket
with him, speaks of him in terms of the warmest
admiration. Mr. S. H. Harvard, who spent several
months at Red River in 1869, in a private letter to a
friend in this city, says :

" On my outward trip last sunnner, I reached St.
Cloud, where the railway then terminated. On
getting into the coach next day, I found just one
other passenger — a fine, tall, muscular youth of some
twenty -foux years of age. One glance showed he
was a Canadian, and in a lend of strangers and
foreigners. I felt drawn towards him. He was a
stranger to me. I knew nothing of him ; but he
behaved properly, and I was singularly struck with
his inoffensive bearing towards those with whom we
came in contact. The day before we reached Aber-
crombio, we stopped for the night at a lonely road-
side inn, and beds being scarce, we shared one together.
I found from him that he was going to Cariboo, to
the gold mines ; that he had been working at Madoc-
This man was Thomas Scott, who has lately been
murdered in cold blood."

It cannot be deemed inappropriate that we inquire
respecting the impression that was made on the
public mind by this most cruel criminalitj^^. The
report given in the Guardian of a large meeting held
in Toronto is as follows :

INDIGNATION AND SYMPATHY.

" It is a long time since Toronto has seen such an
immense and enthusiastic meeting as that held last
Wednesday evening, to w»?lcome the deputation of
escaped prisoners from Red River, to express indigna-

THE CLIMAX OF CRIME AND CRUELTY.

145

blanket
/^armest
several
ber to a

bed St.
I. On
st one
►r some
wed he
rs and

was a

but he

k with

om we

Aber-
Y road-
gether.
boo, to
^adoc-
been

nquu'e
)n the
The
ir held

ich an
d last
on of
ligna-

tion at the murder of Scott, and to urge upon the
Government the importance of prompt action for the
relief of the loyal Canadians suffering from the
tyranny of Riel. An attempt was made to hold the
meeting in the St. Lawrence Hall ; but it was founa
that no building could be found large enough to hold
the people, and the meeting adjourned to the square
in front of the City Hall. The crowd was immense,
and the expressions of sympathy were unmistakably
enthusiastic. After the Mayor and Mr. M. C. Came-
ron had spoken, Mr. Setter, Mr. Mair, Dr. Lynch and
Dr. Schulti; successively addressed the meeting. At
different points in their speeches they were greeted
with vociferous cheers. The spirit of the vast con-
course showed that the people of Ontario are not
disposed to temporize with Riel and his disloyal
clique in Red River. While Mr. Cameron was speak-
ing, the Queen's Own, headed by their band, playing
military airs, marched past, and were saluted by loud
cheers from the crowd. The remarks of the speakers
added little to our previous knowledge ; but it was
rousing to hear the thrilling story of suffering from
the lips of men who had been imprisoned by Riel and
escaped from bondage. Dr. S'^hultz alluded to the
unfounded boast of Riel, that he would turn the
Indian tribes against the Canadians ; and said that
the reason he came there from Fort Garry to Fort
William was to ascertain the feeling of the Indians
in that section, through which our troops must pass,
and that he had slept in the wigwams all along the
route, and found them unflinching in their loyalty to
our Government. Whatever faults of judgment Dr.
Schultz may have shown, it is impossible not to-
admire the pluck and endurance of a man who baffled
the vigilance of his enemies, and leaving his family
behind unprotected, came at such an inclement season
all the way from Fort Garry to Fort William, on
10

146

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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ii.

i "

snowshoes. It beats Xenophon's retreat of the ten
thousand Greeks.

" Another immense gathering was held on Front
Street, on Saturday night, to express indignation at
the murder of Scott, and co press upon the Govern-
ment the necessity of immediate and decisive action
to suppress the insurrection in Red River, and annex
the country to Canada. The chair was taken by Aid.
Metcalf, and stirring speeches were made by Mr
Thomas Nixon, Aid. Dickey, Mr. Boulton, Mr. Hugh
Scott, Mr. Fleming, Mr. Robin, and Mr. Cunningham
of the Globe. The resolutions, which were enthusi-
astically adopted, gave no uncertain sound on the
question of the hour."

But are we warranted in regarding the death of
Thomas Scott as murder and those who sentenced
and put him to death as rtiiirdcrers ? Consider the
following utterances of those high in authority, and
then judge:

Lord Dufferin. — "The killing of Sc tt was not
an exerciso of jurisdiction known to any form of
law, but an inkiiman slaughter of an imiocent
man, af/gr<ivated by circumstances of extraordinary
bruUdify."

He also states, " The utmost alleged against Scott is
that he used violent language in the prison, and that
he had alluded to an intention of capturing Riel and
retaining him as a hostage for the release of the
prisoners ; but even these allegations luere not proved,
nor, had tliey been ten times over, could they have
rendered him liable to serious punisliment."

And, further, " All the special pleading in the
world will not prove the killing of Scott to be
anything else than a cruel, wicked and unnecessary
crime."

the
be

sary

THE CLIMAX OF CRIME AND CRUELTY.

147

ott is
that
and
the
ved,
lavc

Lord Carnarvon in his despatches designated it
as a " brutal and actrocious crime" and spoke of it
as a "murder" no less than five times in the course of
his remarks, and concluded by saying that "such
a murder as that of Scott cannot be allowed to go
unpunished."

The Hon. Edward Blake, then member for South
Bruce, in an exceedingly able address on this subject,
remarked as follows : " The murder of Scott was per-
petrated on the ground of pure personal revenge,
and ... it was a most unprovoked and damn-
able murder."

The Chief Justice of Manitoba, in passing sen-
tence upon Lepine, said to the prisoner : " You robbed
Her Majesty's loyal subjects of their property and
plundered whenever you could do so, with impunity.
And, lastly, you crowned the catalogue of your crimes
with the slaughter of Thomas Scott for no other
offence than loyalty to the Queen."

The late Sir George E. Cartier, in a private
communication to Lord Lisgar, says, " The killing of
Scott was an excessive abuse of power and cruel
barbarity."

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CHAPTER IX.

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POST-MORTEM INDIGNITIES, ETC.

The name of Thomas Scott will never perish from
the earth so long as the Canadian histories relating
to that period shall continue to be read. Neither
tomb, tablet, nor monument shall be needed to per-
petuate his memory. The cruelties attending his
death were narrated in my last chapter, and now two
questions may with propriety be considered.

First : Why was he put to death ?

It was not, certainly, because he was Such a des-
perado as to render his continuance in life a menace
to the liberties and lives of others. Nor was it be-
cause he was guilty of any offence punishable by
death according to the laws of the British Empire, of
which he was a subject and within which he suffered.
True, he was twice a prisoner, but was never taken
" under arms," as I have already shown. It has been
charged that he brought this punishment upon him-
self by his violent and insulting conduct while a
prisoner. But what authority had Riel and his
confederates in rebellion to inllict capital punishment,
even for conduct ever so violent and insulting ? Be-
sides, I was assured by his fellow-prisoners that his

POST-MORTEM INDIGNTTIES.

149

conduct in prison was not in any way exceptionally
violent, and that the offence cited against him by his
enemies, as giving special annoyance, really occurred
on this wise : He was suffering from an ailment which
compelled him to ask permission to retire frequently
to premises in the rear. On this occasion he was cruelly
and insultingly refused by the guards, and as he urged
his request, O'Donohue entered the corridor and re-
proved him sharply for the disturbance he was caus-
ing, reminding him that he was now in prison; to
which he replied that they should be treated decently,
even though they were in prison. This was pronounced
an insult to an officer, and the offender was ordered
to be put in irons and in close confinement, from
whence he was taken a few days later to receive his
death sentence. That this was the reason for his
being thus sentenced was the merest, shallowest and
meanest pretence imaginable, as the following facts
clearly show. Two ex-insurrectionists, Bruce and
Dumas, testified in the witness-box at Lepine's trial,
— the former that Lepine, the "adjutant-general,"
told him about twenty days before Scott's death that
" the prisoners would be let out soon, but that one or
two would be shot first ; " while the other swore that
" for about a week before, it was talked about among
the guards that Scott would be shot." The offence
which some have declared brought on the tleath
punishment had not been committed on either of
those dates, and the secret of this great cruelty was
I) ">t so much in what Scott had done, as in what Riel
expected to be able to do by means thereof. It was

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

probably in his mind, and in the minds of some who
were secretly co-operating with him, that this stroke
of policy would lead the loyalists of the western
settlements to elect representatives to his Assembly,
and thereby, seemingly at least, support his govern-
ment and secure the passing and sending to Ottawa of
the " bill of riglits," which in that case would be re-
garded as expressing the views, wishes and demands
of a united people ! Thus !ihis young life was sacri-
ficed, I fully believe, to strengthen and intensify the
terrorism he was exercising ; in a word, as a master-
stroke of policy.

Secondly : What was done with the body ?

A rough box had been brought to the place ap-
pointed, before Scott and I arrived ; but before the
body was placed therein, I requested permission of
Riel to remove it to my home, and take it thence to
Kildonan for Christian burial. To this he consented
at first, but quickly withdrew his consent. In the
morning I was informed, by one whose aid I had
asked for, that Riel had consented that if I v/ould
ccmt,. together with the Bishop of Rupert's liand, and
guarantee that the burial should take place cjuietly,
" without any demonstration," he would allow us to
remove the body ; but whan we applied, as advised,
he promptly refused us, on the ground that the adju-
tant-general insisted that it must be buried in the
fort, telling us that a grave was then being dug
sufficiently large to contain it and any others that
might have to follow. But was it so disposed of ?
Undoubtedly it was placed in tiie box, and the box

POST-MORTEM INDIGNITIES.

151

ne who
stroke
western
lembly,
jovern-
;awa of
be re-
jmands
1 sacri-
ify the
naster-

ice ap-

)re the

pion of

nee to

sented

n the

I had

\70uld

d, and

uietly,

us to

vised,

adju-

in the

dug
that
d of?
box

and body placed in one of the bastions of the fort;
but, as undoubtedly, only the box and rope used in
binding the arms were placed in the long, trench-like
grave. After the arrival of Colonel Wolseley and his
troops, and the dispersion of this abominable con-
federacy, we were allowed to open the grave and
search for his body. The following account of our
proceedings and the results appeared in a Winnipeg
paper of that date :

"THE LATE THOMAS SCOTT — UNSUCCESSFUL SFARCH

FOR HIS REMAINS.

" On Thursday forenoon the inside of the quadrangle
of Fort Garry presented a scene somewhat singular.
A few paces in front of the north end of the store,
some half dozen r m were seen, by turns, busily at
work digging out what looked to be, and what was
thought to be, a grave. They were searching for the
remains of Thomas Scott.

" There was a large crowd around, amongst whom
we noticed His Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor,
Rev. Messrs. Black, Fletcher and Young, Drs. Codd,
Schultz and Lynch, Mr. J. McTavish and Messrs.
Cunningham and St. John of the Toronto press, etc.

*" The excavation was carried on under the direction
of the Rev. Mr. Young, and was proceeded with with
great vigor. As the hole deepened, the excitement
became the more intense, and when, after digging
some six feet, the spade struck on a board, and when
the earth was removed and disclosed a deal board
shaped like a coffin, everyone held his breath. But
the excitement was turned into something like dis-
appointed rage when one of the diggers thrust his
arm into the box and pronounced it empty ! It was

152

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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'it,:'

ii!i

empty, excepting -nly the rope with which Scott's
arms had been pinioned."

Now, more frequently than ever, the question was
asked, " Whatever have they done with poor Scott's
body ? " After months had elapsed, one of the ex-
guards gave me the following information, which I
have ever since regarded as a satisfactory answer to
the question. He stated that before the box was
buried, the body, now stiff in death, was taken there-
from, and after it was weighted heavily with chains,
placed about it like a network, it was plunged through
a hole in the ice, and thus made to sink quickly to
the deptlis of the river, where, being thus anchored,
it will probably remain for long ages. Thus, having
pursued the poor young loyalist to his death, end
denied Christian burial to his mutilated body, they
rested not until they had chased it down to the deep-
est depths ot' their deep, muddy river.

CERTAIN UNDERRATED CRUELTIES.

In the previous chapter the " climax of crime and
cruelty " was represented as reached when, by order
of Kiel and his " council of war," Thomas Scott was
barbarously put to death on March 4th, 1870.

I am very glad and thankful that it may be truth-
fully stated to have remained without a parallel dur-
ing the entire course of the rebellion, but am sorry
to have to add that some speakers, and even authors,
in making much of that fact, representing it as "Kiel's
one dark crime," have used language seemingly
intended to imply that but for its commission all his

!,(r

POST-MORTEM INDIGNITIES.

153

his

other wrong-doinf^s would have been regarded as
mere trivialities, which were either justifiable or con-
donable. This disposition to minify his lesser cruel-
ties, I take it, is attributable either to ignorance of
both their nature and number, or to the desire to mis-
lead others. If those who have taken such lenient
views of the case had been compelled to experience,
or even witness, these cruelties, they would not have
so erred in underrating them. The " foot hills " near
the Rockies are not regarded as mere mole-hills
because small in comparison with Mount Sir Donald
or Mount Lord Stephen. Having already referred to
the treatment accorded to Dr. Schultz, Major Boulton
and Thomas Scott, I shall now specif}'^ certain other
cases of severe suffering which have been generally
overlooked. Even prior to Scott's murder, Messrs.
Hallett and Gaddy, worthy natives of the country
and respected members of the community, had the
misfortune to come into special disfavor with R:el.
They were both, I think, employed by Colonel Dennis,
before the outbreak, as guides and helpers, and on the
arrival of Governor Macdougall at Pembina, Hallett
was sent to pilot him and his party into the settle
ment, and with them, after being roughly handled, he
was ejected by the French half-breeds. Returning to
his home near Winnipeg, he came into notice soon
after in association with Scott on an errand of mercy
to Riel, which resulted in the imprisonment of both.
After enduring close confinement and hard fare with
his fellow prisoners for many weary weeks, and while
Riel was in a most unamiable mood on account of the

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

fortunate escape of Dr. Schultz, he seemed moved to
pay special unkind attention to Hallett, and to make
his prison life f> severer punishment than hitherto.
As testified to by an ex-prisoner at the Lepine trial,
the beginning of greater severity was on this wise :
While the poor man, well on in the sixties, was, by
permission of the guards, seeking a little warmth by
the stove in the corridor, Riel entered and indignantly
demanded of the guards, " Why are these dogs allowed
out here ?" Hallett, replying simply, " We should not
be treated worse than dogs," was ordered to be hand-
cuffed and sent into solitary confinement. The little
room from which Dr. Schultz had recently escaped,
with the broken window as the fleeing doctor had
left it, became his prison, and as the cold outside was
thirty below zero, it is simply wonderful that he did
not perish then and there. In this cold, wretched
place he was kept for several weeks. Is there any
marvel that the sufferings caused thereby did not
terminate with his imprisonment ? From that date,
it was stated, his health was completely and irretriev-
ably broken, and, what was vastly worse, his mind,
through physical ailments and sufferings, became so
unbalanced as to lead to his seeking relief in suicide !
Doubtless in this he was entirely irresponsible ; but
not for a world would I have resting on me the re-
sponsibility of having tormented him into insanity
and irresponsibility.

The other case, that of Mr. Gaddy, was likewise
one of prolonged suffering. He was accused with
acting as a spy for Colonel Dennis, and condemned

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fOST-MORTEM INDIGNITIES.

155

oved to

o make

itherto.

e trial,

s wise :

kvas, by

mth by

fnantly

illowed

uld not

5 hand-

e little

scaped,

or had

de was

he did

etched

re any

id not

date,

triev-

mind,

line so

icide !

; but

le re-

lanity

ewise
with
nned

to death : but tor some reason, instead of being shot,
he was placed in one of the rough stone bastions,
and there kept in a most pitiable condition for
weeks, until he made good his escape. During his
imprisonment the report was circulated — I suppose
for the terrorizing of his friends — that he had
been put to death ; a report which he was enabled
to contradict himself by his unlooked-for arrival
at home. Whence, in such instances as these, and
after such sort, came " man's inhumanity to man,"
this de-humanizing of the human ? I know not,
unless it resulted from the coalescing and co-work-
ing of the two well-nigh ubiquitous spirits, the
spirit of rum and the spirit of the nethermost
regions. As Kiel had stated to me that after the
terrible example he had made of Scott, should the
result contemplated not follow, and especially if the
prisoners were not more careful, others would cer-
tainly follow in the same way, beginning with certain
persons whose names he mentioned, I proposed, with
his permission, to see the prisoners and dissuade them,
if possible, from giving offence in any way to the
guards and their officers. To this he at once con-
sented, and I went forth on the errand I had sug-
gested. Intimating to them that I viewed their situa-
tion as most critical, I advised them to studiousl}^ avoid
all, in word or deed, that might give offence, and also
to do whatever might be required, so long as it did not
involve sin, which they one and all without hesitation
promised. The names he gave me as standing first
on his black list were, Powers, McLeod and Parker, a

156

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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trio of loyal, respectable and brave men. Sergeant
Pov/ers, who prior to his arrest resided on his farm
west of Winnipeg, had served many years in the
army, and at this date was one of Her Majesty's pen-
sioners. He was soldierly in appearance and manners,
and highly esteemed, where best known, as an intelli-
gent, honorable, peace-loving member of the com-
munity. After the suppression of the rebellion his
worth was recognized in his appointment by the
Government as Warden of he prison in Winnipeg,
where it became his duty to turn the keys upon
several of his former oppressors, notably the notorloas
adjutant-general referred to — a turn in the wheel,
certainly, on account of which many rejoiced. But
Riel hated him, as he did Hallett and Parker and
McLeod, with no ordinary hatred, as the sequel will
show. The promise I have referred to as given me
by the prisoners, was soon subjected to a test much
more severe and disgustini^ than we had thought pos-
sible ; but it stood the strain and was fulfilled to the
letter. I witnessed with sorrow and indignation the
testing a few days later, when I saw these men, each
walking between two armed half-b/eeds, with wheel-
barrow in hand, and engaij^ed as directed, in scaveng-
ing of the most offensive description, in clearing away
and wheeling to the river the accumulations from
the rear premises of the fort. That such brave and
worthy subjects of our Gracious Queen should be
compelled to do such vile work at the bidding of
these contemptible rebel masters, was greatly in
excess of our forebodings. Nevertheless, they kept

POST-MORTEM INDIGNITIES.

157

their promise, and thereby. I shall ever believe,
escaped what was planned as a second "stroke of
policy " for the hastening of the desired consumma-
tion. Remembering these facts as I do, I must be
excused from regarding these underrated cruelties as
mere uncensurable trivialities.

in
kept

BRIGHTENING PROSPECTS.

Soon after the period referred to in the closing
sentences of my last chapter, the dark clouds, which
for so long seemed to be lowering just above our
heads, began to brighten somewhat, through a few
rifts which had been caused to appear here and there
betokening the approach of a brighter day for our
disturbed and terrorized country. " Let honor be
given to whom honor is due ; " but the (juestion
arises, to whom is the honor really due of causing
those rifts and of bringing about such a brightening
of our prospects ? In order to avoid being misappre-
hended by any, I will try to be very explicit, and
may be deemed, by some, rather personal in my
statements. Ever keeping in view that " the heavens
do rule," and that while " man proposes Uod disposes,"
we may nevertheless gratefully acknowledge indebt-
edness for help and deliverance to those whose efforts
became the means of bringing that help and deliver-
ance. The missi(m of Mr. Commissioner Smith (now
Sir DonaM) to "the people of the North-West," at
that particular juncture, was confessedly one of great
importance, and his eminent and exceptional titncHs
for so responsible a position was, I presume, considered

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with much care ere he received his " special "
commission, nor have I seen reason to doubt that
the bearings of his patient, gentlemanly and prudent,
as well as loval, conduct under Kiel's brow-beating
and insults during his semi-imprisonment in Fort
Garry (for althougli a duly certified commissioner, he
was nevertheless treated rather as a prisoner, and not
allowed to pass out of the fort unless attended by
two armed guards), and liis earnest efforts in behalf
of the liberty and lives of imperilled loyalists, were
very influential in bringing about the changes at
which I have hinted. I am aware that there were
those both within and without the prisons who, worn
out with weary waiting for their own release, or the
release of their friends, through his influence became
impatient and complaining on account of what they
regarded, tlirough not knowing tlie circumstances, as
sheer tardiness, indicative of a censurable want of
either sympathy or courage. Such, however, were
not my views. Had I been circumstanced as they
were, possibly I should have felt as they did, but
knowing what I knew from personal observation and
contact with all parties, I felt then, as I feel now,
that it was far wiser, safer and likelier to lead to
success that he should " make haste slowly." The
task he undertook was no easy one, as he saw clearly
on his arrival at Fort Garry, but he so prosecuted it
as to accomplish vastly more In the way of weaken-
ing Kiel's influence, and preparing the way for his
flnal oN'erthrow, than has })een generally understood.
Very true, he was unsuccessful in his eflbrts to secure

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POST-MORTEM INDIGNITIES.

159

the immediate release of the prisoners, and to save
the life of poor Thomas Scott, but he was successful
in the case of Major Boulton, and in his efforts to
gain such knowledge of the views and feelings and
wishes of different classes for incorporation in his
report to the Government as were most valuable, and
also in his subsecpient efforts to aid in restoration of
order, and in the adjusting of manifold and conflict-
ing interests : so that in these and many other ways,
as I view it, Sir Donald has placed the Dominion
under obligation for services rendered in the North-
West.

The late Consul Taylor, in a carefully prepared
paper read before the Historical Society, Winnipeg,
bore this testimony : " I believe the time will come
when the services of Sir Donald A. Smith to the
people of Canada and of Manitoba, in the conferences
he held with the people in 1869 and 1870, will be
regarded as of the highest value and as constituting
the most eventful incidents of his life."

Nor can his worthy example as a philanthropist, as
seen in his munificent donations for the establish in*'',
or extending, or supporting of some of the worthiest
institutions of our country, fail to do great good by
suggesting to other men of wealth that there is " a
more excellent way " than that of accumulating and
hoarding, and by stinuilating them to a similar use of
what they are but holding in trust for a brief period,
which will be followed by their accounting in f\dl to
the one great Fro})rietor.

I have pleasure- here in mentioning the name of

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

another whose friendship I enjoyed for many years
in that country. I refer to the Archbishop of
St. Boniface (now deceased). After long absence
from his diocese, while attending the Ecumenical
Council at Rome, the bishop returned a few days
only after the death of Scott. Alas ! that he did not
return a few weeks earlier ; then I am fully persuaded
that atrocity havi not been perpetrated, — aye, and here
let me add, what I fully believe, that his presence at
St. Boniface during the autumn and winter preceding
would have rendered such a rebellion utterly impossi-
ble. He was too wise a man, and too good a Chris-
tian, to do else than oppose such a movement, and
with Bishop Tache at home, and in opposition, Kiel's
following would have been most insignificant and
feeble ; a single official wave of his hand would have
proved more potent than all the plausibilities and
exciting harangues of that mischievous agitator. It
has ever seemed to me very unfortunate, also, that
the authority with which he entrusted one of his
leading ecclesiastics, to exercise during his absence,
was not so exercised as to discountenance and sup-
press the spreading evil. This he might have done
very effectually, I judge, at the outset, but failing to
do so he assumed a tremendous responsibility.

Commissioner Smith, who, after the murder of
Scott, had no further communication with Kiel save
in seeking permission to return to Canada, was now,
though with seeming reluctance on Kiel's part, allowed
to leave ; and wliat was still more indicative of a
power above the tyrant's presidential throne, which

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IGl

ly years
shop of

absence
imenical
BW days
3 did not
ersuaded
and here
3sence at
)receding

impossi-
. a Chris-
nont, and
on, Kiel's
cant and
luld have
ities and

ator. It
also, that

e of his
absence,

and sup-

ave done

ailing to

lurder of
iRiel save
I was now,
allowed
)ive of a
lie, which

he dared not resist, the bishop's request for the
release of the prisoners was so far granted that
about half their number were liberated, and a pro-
mise given that the remainder would be released
very shortly. Those then liberated were required,
however, to leave the country at once on penalty of
being re-imprisoned. Not very long after this par-
tial gaol delivery another slight " rift in the clouds "
appeared, which vas reported to have been caused by
a peculiar flag manoeuvre, which seemed at first as
difficult of interpretation as w^as the " handwriting
on the wall " in ancient Babylon. The grand old flag
that has so long " braved the battle and the breeze,"
and which had not been permitted to wave in Fort
Garry for many months, was suddenly run up in the
place of another — a kind of nondescript, a thing of
mongrel type, a sort of Franco-Fenian emblem — which
rather appropriately represented the double-headed
Riel-0'Donohue rule, with their respective proclivi-
ties. How was this ? Report, not always reliable,
but prol)ably correct in this instance, stated that it
was owing to the bishop's influence with Riel, and
that a very sharp altercation took place between Riel
and O'Donohue re the displacing of their mongrel
flag, which represented disloyalty, by one that should
stand for loyalty, whereupon a compromise was
thought of and agreed to, that came like oil on the
troubled waters. It was on this wise : An additional
flag-pole was erected, and so quite near eacli other
the two flags were permitted to float as if in perfect
harmony. Some, I presume, will feel like saying,
U

if: 'I

11.1 i

162

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

what a pity that compromise was thought of; far
better had it been for the country if these two mad-
caps had fought it out like " Kilkenny cats " to their
mutual and complete extermination.

An instance of sudden conversion in the history of
the press took place at nearly the same date. The
Neio Nation — Kiel's organ — suddenly vaulted over
from utter disloyalty and the advocacy of annexation
to the United States, to the opposite extreme. This
also was deemed significant, and regarded as an en-
couraging " sign of the times," in which, also, it was
thought that tlie hand of one mightier thai^ Kiel
could be easily traced.

So much for the brightening of our prospects.
" Honor to whom honor is due."

•

'I.

.(!'.,

>f ; far
) mad-
3 their

[,ory of
i. The
d over
ixation
, This
an en-
, it was
u^ Kiel

ospects.

CHAPTER X.

AJV ENFORCED EXODUS.

I If WE referred to the fact that Kiel's release of
one- half of the prisoners was conditioned on their
promising to leave the country forthwith. Such an
enforced exodus at that inclement season, of those
who had been so weakened and made tender by
their prison life, and with such exposures and toil as
would inevitably be theirs in tramping their way
across the prairies for hundreds of miles, was a fur-
ther manifestation of the tyrant's cruelty. But they
deemed the exposure and toil and hardships of the
way preferable to continued imprisonment, and ac-
cordingly bravely set themselves to face all in order
to regain their liberty. Arrangements were made
with a half-breed freighter for ponies and sleds and
men to ctre for them, for the conveying of their lug-
gage, such as clothing, blankets and food, and to assist
them in a general way in reaching Fort Abercrombie,
where they hoped to connect with a line of stages
for St. Cloud, the railway terminus.

At a prior date I liad written to Dr. Wood : " As
to the direction in which we are drifting, I give no
opinion. My trust is in God. * 1 know whom I have

"{('■':■

164

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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believed,* etc., but with a sick wife, my present sur-
roundings, and the forebodings of many ever ringing
in my ears, it will be no marvel to you if I say I
have some rather dark hours. But rest assured /
shall not flee — / stay, even if Mrs. Young's failing
health rentier it a matter of humanity, and so of
(hdy. for Tie to get her away for medical treatment
in tht "vrl^j spring"

And now, o 'ng to two facts, a still further break-
down in the health of my wife, and the opinion of
her medical adviser that no improvement might be
expected unless she could be removed, and that ere
long, from these exciting scenes, and also the peril of
'our son, who had incurred Kiel's displeasure by join-
ing the volunteers — we decided, after much prayerful
deliberation, on their making an attempt to accom-
pany the released prisoners on their long journey to
Toronto. Accordingly, we arranged with the half-
breed referred to for two ponies and sleds, which he
was to care for on the journey — one sled to be
covered in and supplied with buffalo-robes for the
exclusive use of Mrs. Young, and the other for my
son's use, and for the luggage and food. One hundred
dollars for the service was the sum demanded and
paid, though the entire outfit was scarcely worth that
amount, and before starting we found that barely the
ponies and sleds were forthcoming, and that we had
to supplement the sum agreed upon by considerable
outlays for a cover to the sleigh, and for buflfalo-robes
and blankets, which he failed to provide. But this
was no time for parleying. The journey to Aber-

AN ENFORCED EXODUS.

165

sur-

my 1
ed /
iling
80 of
vment

►reak-

on of

:ht be

at ere

eril of

^jor -

yerful

iccom-
ley to
half-
ich he
to be
r the
)r my
indred
and
Ih that
[ly the
^e had
lerable
i-robes
it this
Aber-

crombie, and even to St. Cloud, proved both te; ous
and severe, owing to the heavy snowfalls and i \ ^ong
winds at first, which were followed by heavy thaws,
causing the ice of the rivers and smaller streams to
be covered to a considerable depth with water and
slush, through which my son and others w^ere com-
pelled to wade, after many a hard day's walking, in
order to secure wood for cooking and v/arming pur-
poses. It was, I doubt not, t :;a. e of special Divine
protection and blessing that the 3scaped with their
lives, and emphatically so hi; *^ Mrs. Young, in her
enfeebled condition, and noi withstanding that for
many nights she had to si' d r-it in the open without
any shelter, and dependent solely for warmth on their
camp fire, was enabled to reach her destination in
improved health.

Instructions came from the fort on '" iturday even-
ing that the party must leave ti next morning
without fail. This was to us decidedly embarrassing,
as we had not completed our preparations; but the
inevitable had to be accepted, and so early Sunday
morning we set forth, sadly indeed, from our mission
ho'^e, to journey together a few miles and then to
part, we knew not for how long. I accompanied the
party some ten or twelve miles to the place of the
" barricade," to assist in getting the required " per-
mits " to leave the country, and then a little further
on, and out oi> the prairies we bade each other adieu
with feelings not imaginable, my wife and son under-
taking a journey that might end disastrously, and I
to return to my mission work and now lonely home.

t knowing what might await me there.

■,)V^»

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i I

166

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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Thenceforth for a time our mission premises were
occupied by a trio, one belonging to the genus homo
and the other two, I suppose I must believe, belong-
ing elsewhere. When at home my merriest and most
chatty companion was " Poll," the parrot, but when
journeying to and from my distant appointments
" Polly," my trusty roadster, who served me and the
Church for eight years, was esteemed of greater value.
" Poll parrot " was an inmate of our home for four-
teen years, and evidently felt herself quite at home.
During the season of my loneliness she was sometimes
very amusing, but occasionally she would express
what was coo much of a felt realitj^ to amuse me just
then — as, for example, when associating herself with
me, she would repeat in a most lugubrious tone the
words " Poor critters," leading me half involuntarily
to respond, " Aye, Poll, we are indeed poor critters."

My duties during the next four months, in addition
to ordinary mission work, included journeys to Pem-
bina, U.S., each involving a round trip of over 150
miles, where I conducted services in the village and
also in the fort, preaching to the officers and men of
the United States army — then, and for years, without
a chaplain or public religious services. Besides these
outpost duties, there were certain miscellaneous
activities requiring attention, such as the collecting
of timber, lumber, shingles, sand and other essential
prerequisites for the " Grace Church "• that was then
in my mind, but nowhere else. My work of founda-
tion-laying during those times, when faith and
patience and fortitude were being tested, was greatly

AN ENFORCED EXODUS.

167

were
homo
long-
most
when
nents
id the
value,
four-
home,
itimes
xpress
le just
: with
ne the
itarily
.tters."
dition
Pem-
er 150
re and
men of
thout
these
meous
ecting
sential
then
unda-
L and
reatly

and annoyingly retarded. A quotation from my
Journal on May 24th, 1 870, will be excused, I trust :
" Hired a half-breed to help me in quarrying stone ;
drove out six miles ; hot day, mosquitoes very trouble-
some ; tired from heavy lifting ; a fine lot ready for
being drawn. Shall I ever regret these tiresome
efforts for a church ? I cannot think it." And up to
date, 1897, I have not.

Soon after the opening of navigation, my friend
Governor McTavish, then much weakened and wasted
by sickness and worry, and descending rapidly into
the valley of shadows, bade Fort Gariy a final adieu,
hoping to make the voyage across the Atlantic ere his
life voyage should terminate ; but the two voyages
ended well-nigh simultaneously. It was a sad ending
of his official life in the country which owed him
much, and whose interests he had grieved to see so
ruthlessly trampled on during the weeks and months
in which he had striven hard, but unsuccessfully, to
brace himself against discouragement and a wasting
disease.

A change for the better in my circumstances
occurred when my wife and son arrived from Toronto
on July LSth, 1870. Through the kindness of the late
Mr. Hardisty, of the Hudson Bay Company, and Mrs.
Hardisty, they were invited to return witii them in
their comfortable waggons from St. Cloud to Winni-
peg. Thus their return journey proved a great im-
provement on the outgoing journey ; and yet it is
n >tewortliy that while the severer trip was without a
• ^ath, the homeward trip was attended by the dc^th
;t one of the party.

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168

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

A young lady from the Saskatchewan District, who
had been at the Ladies' College, Hamilton, quietly
breathed her last in their waggon as they were
moving slowly toward a suitable resting-place. After
a brief halt the body, with appropriate funeral
solemnities, was laid away to rest in the little ceme-
tery at Sauk Centre. Their arrival at Winnipeg
came as a surprise to Rev. George McDougall and
myself, just as we were about to retire for the night.
They had not written us of their intended coming,
fearing that Riel would get possession of the letters
and send his guards to prevent their entering the
country. It seemed providential that Brother Mc-
Dougall had remained with me longer than he had
intended, as he was now able to accompany his
friends to their home, still one thousand miles distant.

On their arrival at the ferry near Fort Garry, my
son was ordered by Riel into the fort, which caused
us not a little anxiety. However, after a brief
catechization he was permitted to join us in our
home, and thus we became a reunited family. What
a wonderful turn of the wheel that was which
brought Riel a prisoner, after his defeat at Batoche,
in 1885, under the charge of my son (then acting
Brigade -Major), to whom General Middleton gave
command of a strong guard, with orders to hold
Riel at all hazards, and to take him with as little
delay as possible by river and prairie and rail to
Regina, where, after a speedy and safe trip, they
handed him over to the Mounted Police for safe
keeping. In due course this man, who had caused so

AN ENFORCED EXODUS.

169

!fl

much suffering in 1869 and 1870, and now again i?i
1885, was tried before an able judge, and thougli
defended by the ablest advocates his sympathizei-s
could send up from the Province of Quebec, was con-
victed and condemned to death ; and thoiigh appeal
after appeal to the utmost limit possible was made
and investigated, yet all were negatived, and "the
law allowed to take its course." Thus ended a life
that might have proved a benediction to multitudes,
but, ignobly failing therein, proved the very opposite.
In explanation of the military appearance of the
accompanying picture, I take the liberty of making
brief extracts from a well-written article in the
March number of Massey's Magazine, by Mr. W. L.
Marschamps, on the Winnipeg Field Battery and
my son's relation thereto.

" Captain G. H. Young, whose name figures pro-
minently in the battery history, was the first ser-
geant-major and was subsequently appointed lieu-
tenant. He had been prominent on the side of the
loyal party during the Kiel troubles of 1869-70, and
in 1878 left the battery to organize the * Winnipeg
Troop of Cavalry ' — which was deemed necessary on
account of disturbances threatened by the western
bands of Indians — but rejoined the battery again
temporarily for the campaign of 1885. Of these
events Captain Young preserves as interesting relics,
the rope Thomas Scott was bound with when led to
his death by order of Riel in 1870, and the handcuffs
•he used himself upon Louis Riel fifteen years later
when in command of tne escori. that took him to
prison at Regina — both gruesome mementctes framed
together upon the same shield. . . . Sir Frederick

170

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I',

) I

lii'.

Middletoii, in his official report upon the cam-
paign, gave special thanks to Major Jarvis and the
battery for excellent service, and praised Captain
Young for his zeal and ability, as well as for the
efficient manner in which he performed his staff
duties while acting as Brigade Major, and afterwards
when attached for special duty in the conveyance of

Riel to Regina upon his capture at Guardupuis Land-

• J)
nig.

It may not be uninteresting to many to state that
tlie prisoner, while on board the steamer which con-
veyed him and his guard from Batoche to Saskatoon,
amused himself by composing a sort of historic poem
of several verses, from which I select the following:

" Middleton, you are so generous ;
I owe you for food and good rest ;
1 have found you magnanimous,
For your treatment is of the best.

" Chorus. — Honor to the guards who guard me ;
The Nijrth-West sighs to be free.

" Middleton gave me his own coat ;
And lias he not chosen nobly,
To take care of me on the ])oat,

The courteous Captain Young truly. — Cho.

" My fate, as a jjrisoner of war.

May lead soon to death and the tomb ;
nil, mother earth ! is the time far

When I shall take rest in your womb i* " — C/u>.

Thv journey across the prairies from Saskatoon to
]\Ioose Jaw was made in waggons in very (piick time ;
and thence to Keirina by the O.lMl. As is wnerallv^

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( Al'T. <;. II. \(UN<;.

1/(1/ /■•■n(ii.>j(M.« iij " ,V«i«>. K I Manixitii , ■(

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AN ENFORCED EXODUS.

171

known, Riel was guarded in his prison by the
Mounted Police until in due time he was tried, con-
demned and executed.

The following statements of several who had
escaped Kiel's cruelties may not be deemed inappro-
priate. I reproduce here a refe.oiice which appeared
in the Christian Guardian of April 13th, 1870 :

"THE REV. GEORGE YOUNG.

" Mr. Charles Mail- and some others are very free in
blaming the Protestant ministers of Red River for
preventing, by their peaceful counsels, tlie warlike
purposes of a portion of the settlers who were dis-
posed to march on Fort Garry. But it is probable
that they by this act prevented scenes of blood and
sutt'ering. We know what the result of the peace
policy is. We cannot say what the result of a war
policy would have been. We are gratified to know
that our missionary, the Rev. George Young, has
acijuitted himself like a man and a true Christian in
the trying ordeal through which he has passe^^ The
Dally Telegraph reports a conversation with a reliable
gentleman just arrived from Red River — an eye-
witness of recent events — in which Mr. Young's name
is mentioned with much admiration. The followin<r
is the conversation as given by the Telecfvaph :

**' Reporter — We are particularly desirous of having
information as to th«' Rev. Mr. Young. What is he
doing, and how is he treated (

"'Mr. A Mr. Young told me llie night before I left
that he was detrrmined to stay at Red River. He
has acted as a man througliout the trying times of
Red River. When the prisoners were hrst taken at
Schultz's he visited them and won their confidence,
and so impressed was Riel with the man's

1' 11

v.m

goodness

I its

; i

172

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

of lieart and upri^^lit character, that many favors were
granted the prisoners tlirough his intervention.

'"Reporter — He was present when Scott was mur-
dered ?

'"Mr. A. — Yes. He was sent for at ten o'clock on
the night previous to the execution, and remained
with Scott till an early hour the next day. Mr. Young
was, up to that hour, under the impression that
Scott's life would be saved.

" ' Reporter — Has he a large congregation ?

'" Mr. A. — Not now, since the Canadians left. He
has a comfortable two-storey log house near the fort,
neatly furnished, and a large room, intended eventu-
ally for a drawing-room, is at present used as a place
of worship till a church is built. For his building
fund he has received subscriptions from people of all
denominations in the settlement. He has shown
more courage and pluck than any other clergyman of
any denomination at Red River.'

" FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE.

" The Editor of th" Selkirk, Man., Record, v/ho was
one of Riel's prisoners in 1870, copies the Rev. Dr.
Young's graphic letter on the i lurder of Thomas Scott,
and vouches for its exact truthfulness. He adds
further :

*" We remember full well when we were surrounded
by Riel's treachery and made prisoners, how Mr. Riel
addressed his ragged crew in a bombastic speech, and,
pointing at us, said, " Vous ayez les chiens la : traltez
lea comme lea chienH " — " You have dogs there ; treat
them like dogs." And right well his rebel banditti
carried out his behests. Twenty-six persons were
thrown ivto a room ten feet by twelve, where we
^'."ire fortod to break sonw* of tl:e window panes to
prevent sutibcation, and there we were for three

AN ENFORCED EXODUS.

173

months, without " fire, and snow often lying thick
upon us in the morning, blown in through the broken
windows ; fed upon rotten pemmican or such garbage
as the filthy crowd of robbers saw lit to give us.
After undergoing such an ordeal it cannot be sup-
posed that we at least can, for a moment, feel an atom
of sympathy for the fate of Riel. The account of
the fortitude he displayed on the gallows, the full
relation of his last words, the gushing admiration of
his beauty when laid in his coffin, the ceremonies
attendant upon his remains when consigned to the
grave, and the crowd who witnessed his interment,
go with us for nothing. We do not have one senti-
ment of admiration or awe for the whole concern ;
our views of the whole matter are in unison with
those of the Rev. Mr. Silcox — or rather of the prophet
Jeremiah. The letter of Dr. Young at the present
time is opportune. When men's minds through the
Dominion are so divided with regard to the justice or
injustice of the sentence carried out upon Riel, this
letter will go far to show the worthlessness of the
creature that people are so agitated about, as we can
truly say that it gives a faithful description of Riel,
and a true account of the circumstances connected
with the murder of Thomas Sc t.' "

; I

1..' iSi':

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4 ■ ",-»

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I if

CHAPTER XL

A NOTABLE MILITARY EXPEDITION.

The reference is to the "Red River Expedition " of
1870, necessitated by tlie rebellion of a portion of
the French half-breeds of the Red River Settle-
ment, and decided on by the Governments of Eng-
land and Canada, in order to the suppression of that
revolt, and to secure the transfer of the great North-
West Territory to or." Dominion. The totality of
thought, consultation and correspondence which led
up to that decision, and conti:iued throughout the
times of preparation and, in fact, until the suc-
cessful ending of the expedition itself and the estab-
lishment of a Canadian Government in that country,
was far in excess of what most people liave imagined
or ev er can imagine. For many months prior to the
organization of the " expeditionary force," it was the
subject of anxious incjuiries and the burden of earnest
pra^'^ers with tens of thousands of others tlian politi-
cians and statesmen, and those who became ulti-
mately instrumental in its accomplishment. After
the loyal people of the Nortli-West became convinced
that both Governments had really determirod that
the transfer, pursuant to the agreement entered into

A NOTABLE MILITARY EXPEDITION.

175

by them with the Hudson Ba}'' Company, should not
be prevented by that unjustifiable rebellion which had
been so inexcusably encouraged by certain mischiev-
ous non-resident agitators, the quieting feeling
quickly prevailed that its suppression and the restor-
ation of right rule in their country would surely be
brought about in the near future. But while all were
quite aware that great difficulties would, in that case,
have to be faced and overcome, only a few were com-
petent to form a correct estimate either of their magni-
tude or their manifoldness. However, after they had
been surmounted, and the " consummation devoutly
wished for " reached, and the official reports of the
costly preparations made by the two Governments
had been published, KMt! especially after the ex-
ceedingly interesting " official journal " of Colonel
Wolseley had been printed and made accessible, all
felt that success had been achieved under circum-
stances extraordinarily embarrassing, and despite the
existence of obstacles seemingly well-nigh insur-
mountable.

To indicate a few of the many preparations needful
in order to tlie collecting and proper equipment and
support and transport of such a force, I quote briefly
from a communication of General Lindsay, tlie chief
in connnand, to the Governor-General, bearing date
April, 1870 : " The expedition is one of considerable
difficulty and magnitude, owing to the number of
men composing the force, to the character of the
country through which they will bave to pass, and
to the time occupied by the constant changes caused

'{>

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176

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

Hii'

m I'

by alternate navigation of lakes and rivers with
numerous portages and dangerous rapirls and, above
all, the distance of Fort Garry fron, the base of
operations." In view of the facts thus summarized,
every probable and almost every possible contingency
had to be carefully considered and prepared for.

Colonel Wolseley (now General Lord Wolseley),
having been appointed to the command under General
Lindsay, suggested at the outset that the force should
number not less than 1,200 fighting men. These were
to consist of seven companies of the First Battalion of
the 60th Rifles, 350 strong, besides twenty men of the
Royal Artillery with four seven-pounder mountain
guns, and twenty men of the Royal Engineers, and a
proportionate number as army hospital corps and
army service corps, making in all over four hundred
regular soldiers, to be associated with a militia force
to be taken from the drilled militia regiments of
Ontario and Quebec, and enlisted for a two-years'
service, if required, making up two battalions of
350 each of non-commissioned officers and men.
Detachments were to be left at different points for the
protection of reserve stores : One company of the
Quebec battalion at Port Arthur, with two of the
seven-pounders and a small number of artillerymen
in charge of them ; also one company of the Ontario
battalion at Fort Frances, for a similar purpose,
awaiting the return of the regulars from Fort Garry,
when they should proceed to their destination ; so
that the full force was never massed at any one point
after leaving Toronto in May. When the expedition

1 *'i

A NOTABLE MILITARY EXPEDITION.

177

passed into Lake Sliebandowan, about the middle of
July, moving westward, it numbered, all told, 1,431,
c>f whom 92 were officers, 1,051 non-commissioned
officers and men, 274 voyageurs and 14 guides. Many
of these voyageurs, having been found inefficient,
were dropped out and their places filled by Indians
and half-breeds, who were more familiar with the
route and the work before them.

The distance of their destination from Toronto via
the route they took ^vas, in round numbers, 1,280
miles, Thunder Bay being about midway. At the
start it was supposed that their luggage would be
transported without any detention from Collingwood
to Port Arthur by the steamers chartered for that
service. But a disappointment came in at Sault Ste.
Marie, where the men were given a taste of hard work
in unloading, storehouse building, road constructing,
and portaging their freight for a distance of three
miles around the rapids on the Canadian side. This
occasioned an annoying delay, which was all the more
annoying because it was occasioned by the unneigh-
borly conduct of our Fenian-influenced neighbors of
the United States. The steamers did not offend by
attempting to pass the canal with soldiers on board,
or their arms and other " contraband of war." These
were first landed on the Canadian side, after which
they steamed over with their freight to the mouth of
the canal, but were peremptorily refused entrance,
inasmuch as they had brought up a portion of the
force, and might, when once through the canal, take
them or board again for Port Arthur. And this act
12

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178

MANITOBA. MEMORIES.

M
M

I,! i

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|il!f:s

was all the more unneighborly and annoying because
of its being well known that we had no boat at that
moment on Lake Superior by which the troops could
be conveyed to Prince Arthur's Landing. Conse-
quently the Canadian Government was compelled to
charter, at an exorbitant price, an American steamer.
This arrangement was made, I believe, through the
intervention of John M. Hamilton, Esq., subsequently
judge at Port Arthur.

By the earnest remonstrance of Mr. Thornton, Her
Majesty's Minister, the Washington Government was
induced to withdraw the obnoxious restriction. More-
over, the Fenian and rowdy element then aboundir g
on the United States side of the river threatened to
raid the stores then waiting to be sent forward, neces-
sitating the keeping up of a strong guard for their
protection. Had that been attempted by these
worthies, it would have proved to many, if not all
of them, their last raid. They also reported their
purpose of attacking the vessels while passing through
Lake Superior, again necessitating the presence of a
strong guard on each. But as these contemptible
agitators have always shown themselves more ready
to solicit funds and utter threats than to assail a force
prepared to meet them, no attack was made. By the
21st of June, the whole of the force, with all the
stores, had arrived at Port Arthur. Once landed
there, the colonel in command had forthwith to face
the greatest difficulties and discouragements of the
entire route, and to bring into requisition both the
"land transport service" and the ''boat transport

A NOTABLE MILITARY EXPEDITION.

179

service" which had been provided by the Govern-
ment, in order to reach Lake Shebandowan, fifty miles
distant from Prince Arthur's Landing.

A large number of teams, waggons, teamsters and
laborers, to work at road- making or transporting
luggage, had been sent forward, and were either
organizing for or engaging in their difficult work.
The country intervening was one of the very worst
through which to construct a passable road. A suc-
cession of steep hills of light sand, reaching some
eighteen miles, then a nine-mile stretch of a peculiar
kind of clay that became miry after rain ; then thickly
wooded lands, partially burnt over, and then swampy,
muskegy portions, which seemed almost bottomless
and re(iuired to be corduroyed. Miry creeks and
rapid rivers, too, had to be bridged that teams and
Aoads might pass over. Within a distance of about
forty-four miles were three good-sized rivers, at
distances of twenty-two, twenty-seven and thirty-
nine miles from Lake Superior. The Kaministiquia
required a strong bridge S20 feet long and 18 feet
wide; the Matawan, a bridge 216 feet long and 18
feet wide ; and the Oskondagee, a bridge 75 feet
long, besides several smaller streams. The "boat
transport service " consisted of nearly two hundred
boats, each capable of carrying two or three tons of
freight, besides ten or twelve men. The voyageurs,
a large number of whom accompanied the force, were
to manage the boats, as well as aid in loading and
unloading and portaging, while the soldiers worked
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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

the boats up the steep inclines of the many portages
they had to cross in avoiding the rapids and falls of
the different rivers. On the lakes, when the wind
was favorable, sails were brought into use ; but more
frequently oars, four pairs to each boat, were the
means of propulsion. The portages were about fifty
in all, making a totality of over eight miles of rough
and steep points to be traversed, the boats and their
loads of arms and ammunition and supplies of all
kinds being carried up and over. Officers, men and
voyageurs worked together early and late, in rain
and shine, despite the incessant and annoying attacks
of swarms of mosquitoes, black-flies, sand-flies and
deer-flies. The frequent changes of the heavy lug-
gage from boats to waggons and from waggons to
boats, which was unavoidable while passing from
Lake Superior to Lake Shebandowan, proved very
wearing, not alone on clothing, but on men and boats
and luggage as well, and caused great delay. For a
length of time the entire force was scattered all along
the line, from lake to lake, working at making or
repairing roads, or pushing forward the boats and
luggage as rapidly as possible.

Lake Shebandowan was left by a portion of the
expeditionary force on the evening of July 16th, when
three brigades of boats, seventeen in all, with two
companies of the 60th Rifles, and detachments of the
Royal Artillery and the Royal Engineers, each boat
canying two voyageurs and eight or ten officers and
soldiers, with provisions for sixty days, besides much
miscellaneous luggage, all moved forward toward

A NOTABLE MILITARV EXPEDITION.

181

their destination. From this point the entire force
was divided into twenty -one brigades, each consisting
of six boats, with their proportion of men and freight.
By August 1st all the troops en route for Fort Garry
had embarked for Fort Frances, distant nearly two
hundred miles, and the Lake Shebandowan post was
for a time deserted. Fort Frances — so called in honor
of the deceased wife of Sir George Simpson, then
Governor of the Hudson Bay Company — is but a
trading post of that company, and is situated on tlie
Rainy River, three miles below Rainy Lake, its source.
It is 242 miles from Lake Superior, 150 from Rat
Portage and 410 via LakeAVinnipeg from Fort Garry.
Rainy Lake is about fifty miles long and about thirty
or forty wide, connecting with Rainy River, which is
eighty miles long, forming, for that distance, the
boundary between the United States and Canada,
and connecting with the Lake of the Woods.

At Fort Frances a military store for reserve sup-
plies and a hospital were established, and one company
of the 1st Battalion of Ontario Rifles left in charge
until the return of the regulars, when they were to
move on to Fort Garry. Colonel Wolseley and staff',
after seeing the regular troops and two battalions of
the militia pass on their way to Rat Portage, left on
August 10th for the same point. The Lake of the
Woods is a body of water seventy-two miles long,
and in certain parts nearly as broad, and forms an
important link in this chain of magnificent water-
stretches: it is divided by three promontories into
what really seem three good-sized lakes, the lower

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I'^i

part of the last one, for good reason, being fitly
described as a " mass of islands." The most westerly
point of this lake is known as "The North-west
Angle," which, by a direct line across the country,
is within 115 miles of Fort Garry; but as no road
had been completed across the swampy, muskegy
portion thereof, the expedition was compelled to make
the long and difficult, and somewhat perilous, detour
via Rat Portage, Winnipeg River, Lake Winnipeg and
Red River, thereby increasing the distance fully 150
miles, and adding greatly to the toil of the already
toil-worn men.

Rat Portage, now a prosperous town on the
C. P. R., is situated at the point where the waters
of the lakes and rivers, through which they had
already passed since leaving the head of Lake
Shebandowan, plunge over three large and distinct
falls into the rapid Winnipeg River, which, after
running 103 miles, and making a descent of 350 feet
as it dashes over cataracts and sweeps through
cascades and rapids and eddies, pours its waters into
Lake Winnipeg. In that distance are twenty-five
portages, some of which are long and steep and
rough. These the force had to cross, dragging their
boats and portaging their loads as best they could.
Verily these men were not "playing at soldiering."
Fort Alexander, which is an important trading post
of the Hudson Bay Company, very pleasantly situ-
ated on the banks of the Winnipeg River, two miles
from its mouth, was reached by Colonel Wolseley and
start' in four days and a half from Rat Portage, 101

ii ■ ' ■!

A NOTABLE MILITARY EXPEDITION.

18^

miles distant. Here they were joined by the Governor
of the Hudson Bay Company, now Sir Donald A.
Smith, to whom the force was much indebted for
guidance and aid, in a variety of ways, until they
reached their destination.

I may here pause to remark, that on this expedition
no intoxicating liquor was allowed to officers or men.
The good results of this practical application of prohi-
bition may be gathered from the following extract
from Colonel Wolseley's report : " From firat to last
there was a total absence of crime, and I may add, of
sickness also. Never has any body of men on active
service been more cheerful or more healthy. This
has been one of the few military expeditions where
spirits have formed no part of the daily ration, and
where no intoxicating liquor was obtainable. I con-
sider that the above-mentioned happy results are in a
great measure to be attributed to this fact — a large
ration of tea was issued instead — and I found that the
men worked better than I had ever seen soldiers do
upon any previous occasion where rum formed part of
their daily allowance." I will also add a brief quota-
tion from General Lindsay to the Secretary of State
for War: " I join with Colonel Wolseley in laying great
stress upon the advantages to health and discipline
resulting from the non -issue of a spirit-ration, and I
trust that its days are numbered in the British army."

There can be no doubt — and the fact is now well
recognized — that total abstinence from intoxicants by
men of all professions, and under whatever pressure
by fatigue and exposure, will ever be found the best
policy.

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184

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

On August 21st the little army, consisting of the
regulars of the. 60th Rifles, and the accompanying
detachments of Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers,
left Fort Alexander in fifty boats for Fort Garry.
Lake Winnipeg, the upper part of which they crossed
in order to enter the mouth of the Red River, is a
larger body of water by far than most people imagine,
it being one and a half times larger than our
magnificent Lake Ontario, having an area of nine
thousand square miles, and a length of two hundred
and sixty-four miles, with an average width of thirty-
five miles. The mouth of the Red River is forty-
five or fifty miles distant from Upper Fort Garry,
the " Lower Stone Fort " being about midway.
Arriving at this Lower Fort Garry on August 23rd,
the force proceeded very cautiously up the river, an
advance guard of scouts preceding them on each
bank and keeping up communication with those in
the boats, thus feeling their way through the rapids,
and St. Andrew's parish and Kildonan, until they
readied their camping-ground in the evening in the
neighborhood of St. John's College and the English
cathedral. The intention of Colonel Wolseley was to
push on by day-break to Fort Garry, about four
miles distant, and so give its occupants a " surprise
party." But the night was fearfully stormy, and the
morning not less so, the heavy rainfall filling the
creeks and sloughs with water, and rendering the
roads well-nigh impassable to both man and beast, so
that instead of this early march to Fort Garry direct,
he deemed it advisable for tlie main force to keep to

A NOTABLE MILITARY EXPEDITION.

185

their "boats and work their way up the river to Point
Douglas, while the scouts continued to keep a very
close lookout as they moved along the roadside or
riverside toward that point. Landing from the boats
in the early forenoon, the storm not abating in the
least, they were quickly ordered into readiness for
marching, through two miles of the stickiest, slip-
periest mud they ever saw — to say nothing of its
depth — towards the fort, where they were hoping for
an opportunity of testing the courage and generalship
of Riel, O'Donohue and Lepine and their guards, of
whom they had heard so much. Without a single
exception, I judge, officers and men were eager for the
fray as they ncared the fort, and looked for the first
time on its walls and bastion and mounted cannon,
and called to mind what many loyal subjects of Her
Majesty had suffered within those gates. But they
were doomed to be disappointed ; the fort and guns
and ammunition and stores were there, but the
vaunting braves were not there — they had vanished.

-I 1

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t< t

CHAPTER XII.

T//E TRIUMPHAL ENTRY, AND WHAT
CAME OF IT.

Our long longed-for deliverance came, as already
intimated, on Wednesday morning, August 24th,
1870. That was to many of us a day never to be for-
gotten. Up to eight or nine o'clock of that Vinpleas-
antly vet morning, Riel, O'Donohue, Lepine, ei al.,
reigned and ruled and terrorized, and feasted and
dissipated to their hearts' content, as they had been
wont to do for the ten months last past ; but at that
time, or thereabouts, their revelry received a check by
something more tangible than the mystic handwriting
on the wall of Belshazzar's palace.

In the early morning a rumor was said to be afloat
to the effect that Wolseley and his soldiers were com-
ing up the river with all possible haste ; whereupon
a few loyal young men, my son among them, unable
longer to restrain themselves, set out on horseback to
see if it were really so, and, if so, to greet and wel-
come them as our country's long-looked-for deliverers.
On meeting the advance guard, they were instructed
to " fall in," and not precede, but accompany them to
their destination. An hour or so before the arrival
of the troops, a prominent Kildonian, whom I recog-

THE TRltTMPHAL ENTRY.

187

ers.
:ted
to
val

og-

nized, galloped quickly through the village and on
to the fort, and then, after a brief halt, galloped back
as if under the pressure of some excitement. His
errand, I suppose, was to warn Riel that Wolseley
had come, and to advise him and his confederates to
make all possible haste in making sure of their escape.
Very soon after his disappearance, O'Donohue gal-
loped past, in evident haste, to Dr. Schultz's buildings,
where some of the guards had been quartered, and
who were then despoiling the stores of their counters
and doors and other movables ; and then, with equal
haste, returned to the fort, followed by those whom
he had warned of coming danger, whereupon a general
stampede took place oi men, mounted and unmounted,
all anxious now to leave the fort which they had been
so eager to enter ten months before.

The welcome word that the troops had landed, and
were marching at that moment through the village
toward Fort Garry, was brought me by the late Mr.
Benson, of Peterboro', of the department of the voy-
ageurs and boatmen. In a very short time after his
decidedly energetic knock at my door, I accomplished
the pleasing task of nailing to our bell-tower a
strip of white cotton, prepared aforetime, on which
appeared in very large letters the word " Welcome,"
and then the bell, sent us by my friend Mr. Gibbs,
of Oshawa, by my aid rang out our doxology with
all the vim and emphasis I could command. Very
frequently did I ring that bell, both before and after
that hour, but never so joyously as then. The bell-
ringing over, I proceeded to the fort to welcome in

188

MANITOHA MEMORIES.

,■

■'.I

person these new arrivals, making better time in my
walk thither, despite the rain and mud, than I ever
did before or since.

In attempting a description of the approach of the
troops to the fort, and their entrance, I cannot do
better than to quote from a telegraphic despatch
which Colonel Wolseley forwarded that evening to
General Lindsay, the chief in command :

" Fort Garry, 24th Aug., 1870.

" It rained heavily last night. Landed early this
forenoon at Point Douglas, and marched about two
miles to this place. Upon reaching the village the
inhabitants said Riel was still in the fort and intended
resistance. Could see guns mounted on the bastions
and gateway ; advanced with due precaution, and
found that Riel and his banditti had just left. Some
of his counsellors while escaping were arrested by
our skirmishers, and have since been released. Large
stores of ammunition, numerous loaded muskets and
several field-pieces found. Have been welcomed by
the inhabitants as their deliverer from the oppression
and plunder to which they have been subjected for
months past."

This triumphal entry was not attended by such
" pomp and circumstance " as have attended many
events recorded in history. The rain fell too fast;
our native nmd, so celebrated for its adhesiveness
and slipperyness, was too abounding, and the loyal
people, who were aware of what was about to take
place, were too few and too widely scattered for that;
but never was a military entry effected, on however
large a scale, that was more heartil}'^ welcomed than

THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY.

189

was this, and all the more so as it was not attended
by the slaying of any of the brave men who had
come so far to secure our country's deliverance.

Wolseley's description of the Fort Garry of 1870
may not be uninteresting, and especially as it, like
many a much stronger hold, has vanished from the
face of the earth. " The Upper Fort Garry proper is
a rectangular building about two hundred yards by
eighty-five in extent. The original fort was built in
1840, and enlarged to its present size about 1850. It
has a stone wall about ten feet high, with circular
bastions pierced for guns. It stands at the angle
formed by the junction of the Assiniboine and Red
Rivers ; the site is pretty, and commands a beautiful
view of the prairie on all sides." All that remains
of the fort to-day is the high arched gateway, on the
top of which cannon were formerly placed. His
description of the little village of Winnipeg of 1870,
which is to-day a city of over 30,000 inhabitants,
may not be out of place : " I should say there are
about fifty houses in all ; there are a few stores, but
grog-shops are the principal feature of the place, and
for the last two nights (August 24th and 25th) these
saloons have reaped a rich harvest. Voyageurs, half-
breeds and Indians, in all stages of drunkenness and
quarrelling, made the place a very pandemonium.
But few soldiers were drinking to any extent after
the first night, and a strong picket, to patrol the
village, was kept up every night till everything was
quiet." This is indeed a dark picture, and yet not
overdrawn in the least, as I sorrowfully observed. It

190

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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was most distressing for me to see, on that first night
especially, so many of these men — soldiers, voyageurs
and Indians — who had abstained from all intoxicants
so advantageously to themselves and the entire force,
now so crazed with the vile stuff they were buying
at very high rates from these abominable rum-shops,
as to be actually rolling and fighting in the miry
mud holes of Winnipeg.

This dreadful revelry, and worse than beastly
conduct, was soon, I am happy to say, checked by
the exercise of the authority of Colonel Wolseley
in command of the troops, and of the Governor of
the Hudson Bay Company, Mr. Donald A. Smith,
who acted as magistrate by authority of the Gov-
ernment of Assiniboia, which was not yet superseded
by the establishment of our Canadian Government.
Such scenes contrasted very unfavorably and sugges-
tively with those described by Colonel Wolseley in
his official correspondence, in which he comments
most favorably on the conduct of the entire force
during their journeyings to Fort Garry. In his offi-
cial reports to the Military Secretary, he says : " The
objects of the expedition having been successfully
accomplished without loss of life, I take the liberty
of again bringing to your notice the conduct of the
troops engaged in it. I have no hesitation in saying
that the excessive labor so cheerfully endured and so
equally shared in by all ranks has never been sur-
passed in any previous military expedition. The
regular troops and militia vied with one a,nother in
their enthusiastic anxiety to push forward, each

THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY.

101

being mutually defcermined that neither should outdo
the other. Thii praiseworthy rivalry enabled them
to make the entire distance of over six hundred
miles in about thirteen weeks, carrying with them
their provisions for sixty days, two seven -pounder
guns with their equipment, a large amount of am-
munition and hospital and other stores, all of which
had to be "arried on their backs over forty-seven
portages, making a total distance of about eight
miles. When officers set such an example in carrying
heavy loads, their men, as might be expected, imitated
them unhesitatingly."

Moreover, during those weeks which elapsed be-
tween the disembarkation at Prince Arthur's Landing
and their marching into Fort Garry it rained on
forty-five days, and often for days together their
clothing was wet through. But a brief period was
given to the " regulars " after their arrival, as a
breathing spell ; for having marched into Fort Garry
on August 24th, the first detachment marched out
again to return by the way they came on the 29th ;
while by September 3rd the entire force of the
regular troops had left en route for the east, one
company only, is an experiment, going via the
"North-West Angle" of the Lake of the Woods,
the others returning via the rivers, lakes and por-
tages with which they had already become so familiar.
Wolseley left Fort Garry on his return on September
10th, and reached Prince Arthur's Landing on Sep-
tember 22nd. On August 27th, two days before the
departure of the 60th Rifles, the brigades of the

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192

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

militia force began to arrive, and ere long we rejoiced
in witnessing the safe arrival of so many of our
friends from Ontario and Quebec who had loyally,
at their country's call, volunteered for this service.

Those who have followed me in this sketch of the
expedition must have felt that the expenditure
necessarily amounted to an enormous sum ; and so i^
did, and so have all the military expeditions of any
size that have continued for any considerable time.
The Abyssinian expedition, for example, which re-
sulted in the rescuing of some half-a-dozen British
subjects from the tyranny of a barbarous chieftain,
and which commanded the sympathy and flattered
the vanity of all classes of Englishmen, cost the
nation the immense sum of £9,000,000 sterling ; while
our Red River expedition, organized and prose-
cuted for the purpose of rescuing thousands of Her
Majesty's loyal subjects from an abominable system
of terrorism, and the breaking up of a miserable
confederacy which at one time threatened us as a
Dominion and En^pire with the loss of a magnificent
stretch of territory, the incalculable importance of
which to us is becoming more uiid more manifest as
the years go by, involved the expenditure, we have
been told, of about £400,000 sterling, of which Eng-
land paid the one-fourth.

Some of the many resultant benefits of the incom-
ing of our troops and the deliverance effected thereby,
soon appeared in the revival of business in the
country and the incoming of a desirable class of
settlers. To me, certainly, there came an inspiriting

THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY.

193

uplift in my work of " foundation laying," which was
so greatly retarded during the rebellion.

READJUSTMENTS.

Immediately after the arrival of the troops, and
the suppression of the miserable rebellion which had
resulted in the scattering and, in many cases, im-
prisonment of numbers who had attended our min-
istry, we found ourselves able to push forward our
work more vigorously and expeditiously than was
practicable during that exciting period. A speedy
restoration of good order and of a spirit of hope-
fulness in the community followed, as also the
disposition as well as the opportunity, on the part of
many of the scattered ones, to return to our religious
services. This, in connection with the arrival of a
strong reinforcement of Methodistically-inclined sol-
diers, resulted in a speedy augmentation of our
congregations and membership and of efficient helpers,
together with a complete readjustment of our much
deranged church appliances. Among the officers,
non-commissioned officers and privates of the Ontario
battalion especially, were many who came, not merely
with kindly greetings and good wishes, but with
willing and generous hearts and helping hands to
co-operate with me in the work and services of the
church. A considerable number of these had been in
membership in Ontario, and desired to retain that
membership in military as well as in civil life. This
sudden influx of earnest workers afforded ground for
encouragement and special rejoicing to the small band
13.

194

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

who had been toiling under great discouragements,
ever trying to avoid the "despising of the day of
small things," and to look confidently forward to the
arrival of great things. Oui week -evening as well as
our Sabbath services were very soon encouragingly
attended, and our Sabbath-school, which had been
suspended for a time, owing to the scattering of the

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COLONEL KKNNEDY.

families during the reign of terror, was reciganized ;
and by the aid of those who had been teachers in
Ontario, and the attendance of a goodly number of
men, advanced classes were formed, and thus the
school started out forthwith with unwonted vigor
upon a career of prosperity which has gone on in-
creasingly ever since ; until now Methodism in
Winnipeg "TJoiccs over several large and efficient

THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY.

195

zed ;
'H in
ir of

the
[Igor

in-
in
iient

schools, where we were unable for a time to sustain
even one.

Among those of the military who rendered special
assistance in this good work I mention with peculiar
pleasure the names of Messrs. Kennedy, Mulvey and
Gardiner. Lieutenant (afterwards Major) Mulvey,
was an Episcopalian, but in the largeness of his heart
and catholicity of his Christianity he came at once
to our aid and rendered valuable service as a teacher
of a large Bible-class and assistant superintendent of
the school. Captain (afterwards Colonel) Kennedy
taught a large class and sought in every way
practicable to promote the prosperity of the school
and the church. In after years he became regis-
trar, and for several years mayor of the city; con-
tinuing, whatever his position, to show a cheerful
and unfailing readiness to assist the pastors of the
churches in hospital, educational and ecclesiastical
matters. The sudden ending of his mortal life in
London, England, from that terrible disease, small-
pox, after he had passed through the fatigues and
perils of the " Soudan campaign," as a staff officer
with Sir Garnet Wolseley, brought to me, as to many
others, a feeling of personal bereavement. It seemed
mysterious to us that ere mid-life had been passed,
and while the regiment he had organized in Winni-
peg, and of which he was yet the colonel, was fighting
bravely the miscreant Riel and his half-breed and
Indian following at Batocho, he should have been
languishing and dying in a London hos})ital. But I
trust that grace, mercy and peace were made to

196

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

' I '

abound unto him in those dreary hours of suffering,
and that when all was over, a merciful and gracious
Saviour received his redeemed spirit into rest eternal.
The Imperial authorities duly honored him with
their wonted consideration in the burial solemnities,
and kindly provided by pension for his stricken
family. The constancy, wise counsels and liberality
of this true and unassuming man, and his untiring
co-operation, contributed very largely to the up-
building of the Methodist Church and her institu-
tions in Winnipeg:.

In November, 1870, telegraphic communication
with the great outside world was made to us a possi-
bility, and the first messages sent and received were
as follows :

" Fort Garry, November 20th, 1871.

"Right Honorable Lord Lisgar, Governor- General
of Canada :

"The first telegraphic message from the heart of
the continent may appropriately convey on the part
of our people an expression of devout thankfulness to
Almighty God for the close of our isolation from the
rest of the world. This message announces that
close — as its receipt by your Excellency will attest
it. The voice of Manitoba, uttered this morning on
the banks of the Assiniboine, will be heard in a few
hours on the banks of the Ottawa, and we may hope
before the day closes that the words of your Excel-
lency's reply, spoken at the capital of the Dominion,
will be listened to at Fort Garry. We may now
count in hours the work that used to occupy weeks.
I congratulate your Excellency on the facility so
aflforded in the discharge of your high duties, so far

f i

THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY.

197

as they concern this Province. I know I can better
discharge my own when at any moment we can
appeal to your Lordship for advice and assistance.
(Signed) " Adams G. Archibald."

To the above dispatch the following reply was sent:

" To Lieutenant-Governor Archibald, Winnipeg,
Manitoba :

" I received your message with great satisfaction.
The completion of the telegraph line to Fort Garry is
an auspicious event. It forms a fresh and most im-
portant link between the Eastern Provinces and the
North- West, and is a happy augury for the future,
inasmuch as it gives proof of the energy with which
union, wisely effected of Her Majesty's North Ameri-
can possessions, enables progress and civilization to
be advanced in different and far-distant portions of
the Dominion. I congratulate the inhabitants of
Manitoba on the event, and join heartil}?^ in your
thanksgiving. (Signed) " LiSGAR."

During the autumn and winter of 1870 and 1871,
I was enabled to keep up several outside appoint-
ments as well as to continue the regular services in
town, which were now increased by an evening as
well as a morning service on each Sabbath, and a
regular mid-week meeting for praise and prayer and
exhortation. With this increase of pastoral duties
and the looking after the finances of the missionaries
of the two districts, and the purcliasing and forward-
ing to them of such supplies as they might order,
together with the necessary efforts to secure and
bring together the required material for church-
building in the spring, my time was fully occupied.

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

Our intention at first was to build both parsonage
and church during the summer of 1869, but owing to
the fall of the water in the river a considerable
portion of our raft from High Bluff failed to reach us
until the spring of 1870, when the rebellion was in
full blast, with the results already recorded. Thus it
was rendered altogether impracticable for us to pro-
ceed with our preparations for building until order
was restored by the arrival of the troops. In addition
to the heavy timbers of oak and poplar and elm,
which we required for the frame of the church, and
which did not arrive until the spring of 1870, we had
to gather from distant points the lumber required, as
there were no mills near by for its manufacture, and
this circumstance added greatly to its cost. Owing
to this fact we were often obliged to resort to the
" pit sawing " process, which at the best is a very
laborious, tedious and costly as well as unsatisfactory
way of getting lumber, both the quantity and the
quality being often far from satisfactory. Much of
what was obtainable from the saw -mills in the dis-
tance was made of " spruce," and badly sawn, and
yet sold at prices which may seem well-nigh in-
credible to those unfamiliar with such surroundings.
Mr. Begg, then and for years a resident, in his
history of these times, wrotf^ thus : " In the spring
of 1871 " (when I was prepanng to build), "common
lumber sold for $70 a thousand feet, and the best
quality of dressed lumber brought $100 a thousand."

This should be borne in mind when we come to the
figures which show the expenditures incurred in the

THE TRIUMPHAL fiKTRV.

199

erection of these mission premises. To economize
where practicable, I occasionally purchased from the
freighters the " flat boats " which had been used to
bring loads of freight down the river, in order to
secure the pine lumber used in their construction, and
then broke them up myself to avoid the lumber
being injured ; thus securing, at less cost than I
could otherwise, the material required in certain
portions of the building. This was decidedly un-
pleasant and tiresome work, but, under the circum-
stances, it was warrantable and not " infra dig''
"Necessity is the mother of invention" sometimes,
and knows no law. The most annoying part of the
business to me, I confess, was to be compelled to note
the manifest disposition of many of those conscience-
less laborers to whom I was paying from two to two
and a half dollars a day, to squander the time which
was not theirs in smoking and gossiping with such
idling half-breed or Indian cousins as might loiter
along, while the " pit saw '" and its work stood still.
Perhaps my patience did not always bear the strain
as well as it should, and yet I don't know that under
similar circumstances it would behave differently
to-day.

CHAPTER XIII.

!■!

THE BUILDING OF OUR FIRST PRACE

CHURCH.

We do not always " see ourselves as others see us,"
and so I will quote again from Mr. Begg's history of
those earlier days. Thus he wrote : " On the 10th of
April, 1871, the Rev. G. Young commenced building
operations in the erection of Grace Church, the
reverend gentleman superintending the work him-
self. Mr. Young was a clergyman specially fitted for
establishing a church in a new country ; he was not
afraid of work, and could have been seen, crow-bar in
hand, as busy as any of the workmen on that morning
assisting to move the heavy timbers used in the con-
struction of the church." If ever that " first Grace
Church" building should be taken down it will be
found that the foundations of double oak sills and
sleepers which we then placed in position were indeed,
as Mr. Begg has stated, " heavy timbers." And yet
by means of a somewhat ingenious use of a pair of
very large Red River cart wheels and axle, with a
strong pole and rope, they were suspended separately
by self-b ^p, and then hauled from the bank of the
river, where they had been landed, to the site of the
bu^'lding, by my spirited and faithful roadster
" Polly."

BUILDING OF OUR FIRST GRACE CHURCH. 201

Thus far I had written when the Guardian
brought me the following account, given in the
corresponcence of the Rev. Mr. Morden, of the
almost complete destruction of my dear old Grace
Church by burning. In the near future, I presume,
the foundations I helped to lay and the "heavy
timbers " aforesaid will be — at least all that is left of
them — unearthed and exposed to view, and then
unceremoniously dragged away.

"OLD GRACE CHURCH.

"A recent fire has given passei*s-by on Main Street,
Winnipeg, an opportunity of once more seeing a poi'-
tion of the old Grace Church, which, with the Wesley
Hall block, built during the pastorate of the late Rev.
Dr. Rice, in 1881, on the site of the parsonage occu-
pied by the Rev. George Young, D.D., and his suc-
cessor, Rev. J. F. German, M.A., was destroyed a few
weeks ago, and along with it the greater portion of
the block adjoining it on the south, into which the
church had been enlarged. As the enlargement pre-
served nothing of the appearance of the original
building, probably few of the present citizens were
aware that it was still standing ; but the fire has left
a portion of the old lecture-room exposed to view
from Main Stree^, though from the rear it has all the
time been an object of interest to people who were
here in the earlier days. The blackened ruins are the
last of the old Grace Church that anybody will ever
see, as the building is too badly damaged to be
repaired. The site is too valuable to be long left
vacant, hence, no doubt, soon after the building
season opens, the last vestiges of the historic struc-
ture will be carted away, and a fine business edifice

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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will occupy the ground with which so much of
Methodist history is associated. The building of the
old Wesleyan Institute, the forerunner of Wesley
College, is still in existence, and not much changed in
its outward appearance, though scarcely recognizable
in its surroundings. The splendid seven-storey Mani-
toba Hotel now stands where it stood, and the
pioneer home of Methodist teaching is to be seen a
few doors farther south on the same side of the street.
The Institute cannot be said to have grown into
Wesley College, seeing that an interval of some years
was allowed to occur, during which Methodism was
without an institution of learning, and then Wesley
College had to begin at the very bottom to work its
way up ; yet the efforts of Rev. Dr. Young, Mr. Allan
Bowerman, M.A., and the Methodists of Winnipeg,
who were associated with them in their early educa-
tional struggle, had no unimportant relation to the
future of the Church. Like the old Grace Church,
the work done remains, though it may not be visible
to the crowds who pass along the busy and crowded
street.

" Winnipeg, Tuesday, February 16th, 1897."

In the early spring of 1871 we solicited tenders for
the carpenter work only, leaving the building of the
lecture-room as well as the plastering and painting,
etc., for separate contracts. And here we were fur-
nished with evidence of the truth of the old copy
we used to write after in early boyhood, " M?ny men
of many minds." Three tenders came in, making very
diverse proposals. The first offered to do the work
according to specifications for $1,900, the second for
$1,200, and the third for $600— quite a difierence
certainly. Messrs. Gardiner & Dawson secured the

BUILDING OP OUR FIRST ORACE CHURCH. 20.*?

contract and commenced the work forthwith, and
right honorably did they complete it, and the lecture-
room in the rear as well. Mr. Gardiner, at the time
of taking the contract, was still doing duty as one of
the Canadian volunteers in Fort Garry; but as the
time was near when he was to receive his discharge,
the commandant kindly gave permission for him to
make the contract and also to commence the work.
He and his partner, Mr. Dawson, subsequently erected
a goodly number of buildings in the town, one of
which was the first Zion Church.

The size of Grace Church was 30 x 50 feet, with
eighteen-foot posts, and a steep churchy roof, as will
be seen from the accompanying illustration, which
first appeared under Dr. Wood's administration, in the
Wesley an Missionary Notices. The building was well
painted throughout, the roof with fireproof paint;
the interior wainscotted with w^ell-seasoned basswood
and grained oak. When completed it was voted the
neatest little church north of St. Paul. Mr. Begg,
from whose book I have already quoted, described it
as " a credit to the city, and especially to the Rev.
George Young, who labored so assiduously to provide
a suitable place of worship for his people." The
beautiful stained glass windows, prepared by Mr.
McCausland, of Toronto, were specially attractive,
and bore the names of the several congregations and
Sabbath-schools in Ontario and Quebec whose liberal
donations were sent to Mr. (now Senator) Sanford, of
Hamilton, and by him applied to the payment of Mr^
McCausland's bill. The beautiful circular window

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BUILDING OF OUR FIRST GRACE CHURCH. 205

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which was placed in the front of the church and
admired by all who saw it, whether pagan or Christ-
ian, was donated by Mr. McCausland. It was a
question with many who saw the windows ere they
were packed, as Dr. Wood wrote me, how they could
ever be freighted through to Red River in safety ;
and yet they were so carefully put up in long narrow
cases as to bear all kinds of rough usage, in their
transportation by steamei* and freight cars and Red
River carts, without any serious breakage. After the
first Grace Church was found too small, and super-
seded by the erection of the large block known as
" Wesley Hall block," the lower flat of which was for
rental as stores and the upper as a large hall for
worship (which could accommodate a congregation of
eight hundred or more), these windows were trans-
ferred to a new church, now known as " Wesley
Church."

In the unpacking, arranging and putting up of the
windows I received much aid from my two friends
Messrs. Kennedy and Ashdown, without which I
know not how I could have succeeded. Colonel
Kennedy was in earlier days a first-class painter,
grainer and letterer, and his work on the doors,
wainscotting and desk, as well as in lettering the
name which was placed on the front gable, was so
artistically executed that not a few wondered, when
the building was opened, whose handiwork it was
that so beautified our little temple. The name
" Grace Church " was given by me to this our first
Methodist church in W^innipeg in view of what I

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

deemed its appropriateness. There was so much of
" grace," both Divine and human, in the disposing and
enabling of so many to aid us in our desire to " arise
and build," considered in connection with the antici-
pation that special prominence would be given by all
its ministers to the "exceeding riches of His grace"
for whose glory the mission had been established and
the building erected, that this name beyond all others
seemed most fully to harmonize with our feelings at
the time. Two other names competed somewhat with
this for a season, but preference was finally given, for
the reason just indicated, to the one chosen, and
" Zion " and " Wesley " were held over for a more
convenient season, and then given to the two Meth-
odist churches next built in the town.

When the building w^as nearly completed, and the
opening services were occupying my thoughts a good
deal, I was favored with a friendly call (not the first
nor the last by any means) from the Bishop — now
Archbishop — of Rupert's Land, one of the most schol-
arly, liberal-minded, godly bishops of the Anglican
Church. As he looked through the building and
expressed his admiration, I suggested the following
programme of an opening service, prefacing it with
the remark that while he would much oblige me, as
well as many others, by its acceptance, still that I
should not feel myself aggrieved should he deem it
inconsistent or unadvisable to do so. The proposal
was that he should coiiduct the opening service and
preach the sermon precisely as if in one of his own
churches, allowing me the privilege of a fellow-wor-
shipper and a hearer — a proposal, certainly, I would

BUILDING OF OUR FIRST GRACE CHURCH.

207

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not have made to any other minister in all the North-
West. The good bishop thanked me in the kindHest
manner, and assured me that personally, it* circum-
stances were favorable, it would afford him great
pleasure to accede to my wish, but as he was just
then preparing to leave for England, and many duties
and cares were pressing, he felt that he must beg me
to excuse him from underta-king the service. So
much for catholicity on both sides.

The 17th of September, 1871, arrived at last, and
was indeed a red-letter day in our history in Winnipeg.
The pastor preached at 10.30 to a crowded congrega-
tion from Eph. ii. 7 : " The exceeding riches of His
grace." The Rev. M. Robison preached at 2.30, and
the pastor occupied the pulpit again in the evening.
Many of our friends who had hoped to worship with us
in these opening services were prevented by the pre-
vailing " Red River fever," some of them sick nigh
unto death, so that we felt compelled to postpone
for a season the concert and soiree for which prepara-
tions had been made.

The collections at the opening services amounted to
$122.12, and the net proceeds of the concert held De-
cember 6th, 1871, were $207.50. The amount collected
by myself and two or three helpers, among the mili-
tary in Manitoba, was S1,3GG.87, and subsequently by
Colonel Kennedy and ^Ir. Ashdown, S250, making in
all for Winnipeg and the adjacent neighborhoods
$1,616.87, to which if we add the proceeds of Dr.
Punshon's lectures and the collections made on the
Conference Sunday, and the excess of our Sunaay
collections over running expenses, we have a total of

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

S2,100.16, which I think will be considered, in view
of the circumstances, as exceedingly gratifying and
creditable.

The accompanying kindly references by Dr. Wood
in the Methodist Missionary Notices of October, 1875,

will be appreciated :

•

" The mission was begun by the Rev. Geo. Young,
in 1868. Bro. Young gave up his pastoral charge
of the Richmond Street Church and congregation,
Toronto, and the Chairmanship of the District, in
response to an invitation to begin this new enterprise.
True, there had for a long time been Wesleyan mis-
sionaries to the west and north of Fort Garry, the
former one thousand miles away and the latter five
hundred, but these principally labored among the
Cree and Stoney Indians. A change in the relation-
ship of these vast territories from the Honorable
Hudson Bay Company to the Home Government and
the Dominion of Canada, would naturally throw open
for immediate settlement the fine lands on the Red
River, the Assiniboine, with o^her attractive sec-
tions, now embraced in the Province of Manitoba ; to
prepare for the movement, Bro. Young began his
labors.

"A valuable and commodious site, in what will
become a city of large dimensions, was generously
presented to the Society by the Honorable Hudson
Bay Company, and on this, with indefatigable labor,
and for the first two years with a good deal of social
inconvenience to his family, he erected Grace Church,
witli its school-room and comfortable parsonage and
out-buildings. The heavy frame of timber between
the two buildings bears up a fine-toned bell, given by
the Sabbath -school at Oshawa, as the inscription cast
upon the external surface points out ; this bell pealed

BUILDING OF OUR FIRST GRACE CHURCH. 209

led

forth its notes of welcome when Colonel Wolseley and
the British troops marched into Winnipeg to put down
the Riel rebellion.

" In the year just closed there were eight Methodist
ministers among the settlers in Manitoba. In the
past seven years eight sanctuaries have been built,
societies organized, and the ordinances of religion
maintained with much regularity. The grasshopper
plague has diminished the ability of the people to
sustain the cost of these missions, but we are antici-
pating more fruitful harvests, and a tide of greater
prosperity pervading the whole Province. Attached
to the sanctuaries and * preaching places ' are two
hundred and seventy-nine Church members, with
ever increasing congregations."

The large donations from the kind friends in the
east, which so greatly encouraged us, and without
which we could not have built as we did, nevertheless
were much less than they ever imagined, because of
the enormous freighting and other charges which
came along with them, and which I had to meet ere
the goods were delivered. The freight from Canada
at that date through the United States, via rail and
steamer and ox or pony carts, generally ran up into
the neighborhood of SlO a hundred, and when the
weight of the strong packing-cases had to be added
and paid for at the same rate, it can easily be seen
why the expenditures were not smaller. The con-
stant worry I experienced over these excessive but
unresistable charges was far more wearing on me
than all the hard work involved in the handling of
the materials until they became a part of the building.

The following, communicated by the late Dr.

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

Stafford to a paper since then discontinued, will
indicate his views of the situation in the times of
which I write. At the date of his writing he was the
popular pastor of the present costly Grace Church in
the City of Winnipeg :

" Very few even of Dr. Young's intimate friends
know what an experience he had from his arrival in
Winnipeg in the summer of 1868, till the fall of 1871
saw the completion and dedication of Grace Church.
A coolness, not arising from indifference on the part
of other churches, was overcome by patient endurance
and by such prudence as he had manifested before in
many fields of labor. There was lack of church
accommodation. A room was rented for a time till a
parsonage was ready, which did double duty for
preaching place and residence. The rebellion broke
out. The missionary was simply loyal, and his record
throughout these troublous times is so much a matter
of history that no mention need be made of it here.
After the rebellion, Grace Church, which had been
indefinitely delayed, was pushed forward to comple-
tion. The share he had in this, bearing the expense
personally in a great measure and toiling with his
own hands to bring the material and aid in the
erection, is known fully only to those who aided him
in the task, and have shown the same willingness to
speak of the work. A small congregation of fait' ful
friends gathered in and steadily increased in numbers.
Still, many journeys had to be undertaken in various
directions to establish or visit missions, and the rapid
growth of the city, from 1872 to 1876, required every
effort to visit newcomers, look after the sick, provide
for the poor, and bear a share in the various educa-
tional, religious and temperance movements then
exciting attention ii the new city."

The following report of the soiree already referred

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BUILDING OF OUR FIRST GRACE CHURCH. 211

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to, which I quote from The Manitohan, may not be
uninteresting, especially as it gives the names of
several ladies and gentlemen who so kindly con-
tributed to our aid in that time of need :

"A very succ.ssful soiree, in aid of the building
fund of Grace Church (Wesleyan Methodist), Winni-
peg, came off on the 6th inst. The church, which
is a handsome, comfortable structure, was pretty well
filled, there being, probably, ? persons present.
The evening's entertainment opened with tea and
cakes in the school- room attached to the church, — :*e
ladies, who were mainly instrumental in getting up
tliis part of the affair, presiding over the refreshment
tables ; and these, we may observe, were w^ell loaded
with eatables of a most appetizing description. This
was succeeded by music, and addresses delivered by
the Rev. Mr. Young, IJev. John Black, Rev. Professor
Bryce, Rev. Mr. Robison, and Mr. Edwards. The
choir, with Capt. Kennedy as leader, was composed
of Mrs. Young, Mrs. Lusted, Miss McDougall, Miss
Linton, Miss Crozen, Miss Chambers, Miss Hodgkiss,
Miss Walkley, and Messrs. Ashdown, Emslie, Hackett,
Kellond, John Kerr, David Young and George Kerr.
8ome choice solos, duets, and chorus pieces were
rendered in excellent style, especially a couple of
solos by Mr. Blanchard.

" In the course of Rev\ Mr. Young's remarks, he
gave some statistics regarding the mission property,
as of much interest. The site for the mission was,
he explained, granted by the late Governor McTavish,
of the Hudson Bay Company. The total expenditure
for all the mis.sion buildings, consisting of Grace
Church, the first Zion Church, with school, parsonage,
house for the man who takes care of the premises,
barn, stable, was S7,818..S8. The receipts from all
sources amounted to .'?4,475.50." The deficit was
provided for later on.

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CHAPTER XIV.

r//E FEN/AN RAID OF 1871—A FIZZLE AND

A FARCE.

Very soon after that sunny Sabbath when Grace
Church No. 1 was opened for worship, we were sur-
prised by the sudden gathering of lowering clouds
which seemed to threaten an oncoming storm.
Rumors were circulating freely in the community to
the effect that General O'Neil, of Fenian notoriety,
was again working up a raid on the pocket-books of
the confiding Irish servant-girls of the neighboring
republic in order to secure funds to enable him to
deal a stunning blow to England through Canada, and
that by means of a carefully planned invasion of her
distant and newly acquired Province of Manitoba.
Several circumstances seemed to conspire to promise
him a far easier task and much greater success than
he had hitherto realized, in this invading business.
It has been stated by O'Donohue, Riel's ex-treasurer,
tliat he was assured by the French half-breeds of
Manitoba of a friendly reception and their hearty
co-operation. Added to this, he was confident of an
ample supply of brave men, whose hatred of all that
was British was undoubtable, and who had been
employed in the construction of railways in the neigh-

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boring State of Minnesota, and were just then being
discharged. Of arms and ammunition it was reported
that he was sure of an abundant supply, inasmuch as
the United States Government had kindly returned
all that had been seized after their former raids. It
was not therefore surprising that this rather over-
sanguine individual should be easily persuaded to
undertake the liberation of poor oppressed Ireland
after this rather circuitous fashion. In a letter from
O'Donohue to the Speaker of the House of Commons
at Ottawa, dated St. Paul, Minnesota, February 26th,
1875, he stated emphatically that he could prove by
documents in his possession " that the so-called Fenian
invasion was a misnomer, and that the movement was
simply a continuation of the insurrection inaugurated
in 1869-70 in the Red River Settlement, and with
the same avowed intention and by the same parties."
These statements, as was to be expected, we^ indig-
nantly denied by some who were anxious to save the
French half-breeds from this suspicion. A competent
authority, however, took very difterent ground, and
assured us that he had carefully investigated the
matter, and that he could see no reasonable grounds
to doubt but that Riel did fan the movement at the
first, and that it was only after the raid had failed,
and the valorous O'Neil had for the third time sought
and found safety in the arms of a United States mar-
shall, that he came to the conclusion that *' discretion
was the better part of valor," and so hastened to offer
his services and those of his following to Governor
Archibald. And in harmony with this view it may be

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proper to note another fact showing that this liiiser-
able movement was no impromptu act.

At the trial of Lepine, in 1874, one of the loyalist
ex-prisoners swore that when he was put in prison
with the others, Lepine took from him his pocket-
book, containing $300 in money, and that after being
released he visited that worthy's quiet home, and
asked for his money, but was coolly told that he
" could not get it," and furthermore that he had better
keep quiet, for the Fenians were coming with
O'Donohue, and that it would be better for him to say
nothing more about it. Well, the Fenians, at least a
few of them, came ere long with O'Donohue, but the
S300 never to this day returned to the pocket-book of
that loyalist.

At about 7 a.m. on the 5th of October, 1871, the
raiding force, a mongrel sort of thing, and numer-
ously generalled by O'Neil, Donnelly, Curry and
O'Ponohue, and I don't know how many others,
with about thirty-five " rank and file," crossed the
boundary and attacked, and did really capture, the
undefended trading-post of the Hudson Hay Com-
pany, which was commonly known as a fort. The
7)iodus operandi in this wonderful achievement will
be best seen from the sworn testimony of Mr. Watt,
who was then in charge of that post :

" W. H. Watt, sworn and examined by the Attorney
General —

" * Am in charge of the Hudson Bay Company's post
at Pembina About half-past seven on the morning
of the 5th of October, a party of armed men took

THE FENIAN RAID.

215

possession of the place in the name of the Provisional
Government of Ked River. I was taken prisoner
while in bed and held until our release by the Ameri-
can troops between two and three o'clock p.m. The
men who took the place were armed with rifles and
bayonets, and some with side arms. Prisoner was one
of them ; did not know any in command of the party
till next morning. Saw O'Donohue, O'Neil, Curry
and Donnelly tliere. They were called generals,
colonels and commanders-in-chief. (Laughter.) The
Hudson Bay Company's fort is on British territory.
While I was prisoner there were acts of robbery com-
mitted. A great quantity of provisions was taken
out of the store and loaded into waggons in the
square of the fort. They plundered the place while
there and made prisoners of the people of the fort.
They placed sentries on the gates and made them-
selves perfect masters of the place. Witness then
narrated the arrival of the United States troops,
and said that when Curry and O'Neil heard of it,
the former said that the waggons with the plunder
must be got out. That was Curry's last order
before he fled with the rest. The rank and file
were already (continued witness) nearly all gone —
some on horseback and some on foot — prisoner along
with the rest. They scattered in all directions.
While the Fenians were in the fort the commands
were given in English, by all the four officers; counted
thirty-seven armed men inside the square at one time.
Saw the witnesses brought in prisoners by the
Fenians, but not prisoner at the bar. He was with
the body of armed men who took the fort, and armed
like them. While the armed men held possession of
the fort, their officers told me they had taken it in
the name of the Provisional Government of Red River,
and that they were going to take Fort Garry also.
The Fenians crossed the river after they fled from

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the troops. When the Fenians were apprised by the
horsemen that the United States troops were upon
them, I looked into the square of the fort and saw a
great commotion among the Fenians. Each one ran
hither and thither — some escaping by one gate and
some by another. I soon found myself without a
guard. All the generals and colonels had skedaddled
except one man.'

" To the Attorney-General —

" * That one man was O'Donohue.' "

The reason of this friendly intervention of the
United States troops has been given by the United
States Consul, the late Consul Taylor, in the following
statement : The consul says that he obtained infor-
mation early in September, 1871, of the probability
of a Fenian attack upon Manitoba, which he com-
municated to Governor Archibald and his ministers,
£ id received an assurance that neither the Manitoba
authorities nor the Canadian Government would object
to a movement of American troops across the inter-
national boundary for the suppression of a violation
by Fenians of the Neutrality Laws of the United
States. On the lltli of September a full statement
of the situation was forwarded to Washington. On
the 19th of September orders were sent to Colonel
Wheaton to make the proposed armed intervention,
which he gallantly executed, and under date of Octo-
ber 5th was able to communicate the capture. The
100,000 more cut-throats who were to follow O'Neil
and company never came.

For the service to both countries Colonel Wheaton
and Consul Taylor received through the Department

: ;

THE FENIAN RAID.

217

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of State, by Sir Edward Thornton, the thanks of the
British Government.

Major Mulvey, then the editor of The Manitoba
Liberal, was in command of a company of volunteers
who went to the front to repel the invaders, and thus
wrote concerning the raid :

" In our last issue we stated that a Fenian invasion
of the Province had taken place. Upon the strength
of the Governor's proclamation we made the assertion.
But at the time of its issue, men in a position to
know positively asserted that it was no Fenian raid
— that it was nothing more or less than a projected
rising of the supporters and friends of the old Pro-
visional Government. Men who had carefully
watched the conduct of Kiel in this Province since
last Christmas, and who had heard his seditious
harangues outside of chapel doors on Sundays, knew
better what was in the wind, and notified the authori-
ties accordingly, who treated the information with
indiflference. Now it is ascertained that O'Donohue
was aided and abetted by Kiel and his friends in this
Province, and was told time and again that the
French population in this country were ready to take
up arms on his side. The fort was taken possession
of, not in the name of the Fenians or Irish Republic,
but in the name of the Provisional Government of
Red River.

" V0LUNTEERINC4 AMONG THE ENGLISH.

" As soon as the Governor's proclamation was
issued calling upon all classes and political parties to
' rally around the flag,' a public meeting was called
in Winnipeg and largely attended. By six o'clock the
following morning nearly three hundred men from

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Winnipeg alone were enrolled, marched to the Govern-
ment House and their iService.s proflered. Before the
sun set the following day the men who at first de-
clared they would never again shoulder a musket
were on their way knee deep in mud.

"DEPARTURE FOR PEMBINA.

"On Friday, at 1.80 p.m., an order was issued to
the Wirinipeg company to assemble for parade, and
inside of an hour they paraded ninety strong. At
three o'clock they were ordered to equip themselves
and to be ready to march at four. Although there is
considerable difficulty in providing men with muni-
tions of war and necessaries for the route, yet through
the exertions of Major Irvine and Major Peebles and
the company officers, they were ecjuipped and ready
before the appointed time.

" Many of our citizens closed their places of busi-
ness, amongst whom may be mentioned Davison &
Miller, of the Manitoba Hotel, and Dawson & Gar-
diner, contractors ; in fact, almost every man of the
company left at great personal sacrifice. No induce-
ments could prevail on Mr. Farquarson and Mr.
Armstrong, two aged men, to remain behind.

" At five o'clock the little expedition, numbering
two hundred men and twenty teams, moved oflf from
the fort across the Assiniboine.

" In the pelting rain the men had to stand for nearly
three hours waiting for the whole to cross that
abominable ferry. The Winnipeggers had only fifty-
five blankets for eighty-eight men, and these were
wringing wet, so that the comfort of the first night's
campaigning was not very agreeable. But the men
were in the best of spirits. The roads were nearly
impassable, and we had scarcely marched two miles ere
the teams got off the road, so we threw out a line of

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^20

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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skirmishers to find it, and when they came to a ditch
they shouted out to the driver 'right' or 'left/ as they
were unacquainted with the teaming phraseology of
' gee ' and ' haw.' We succeeded in making five
miles of as miserable a march as ever soldiers made,
when the sound of the bugle told us that we were to
pitch tents for the night.

" On tiie wet ground, covered by a single wet blan-
ket, the gentlemen soldiery of Winnipeg spent the
first night."

I deemed it my duty to join them next morning,
my son having done so already.

" The little expedition halted the following day at
Stinking River for some five or six hours. Here we
ascertained that O'Donohue was taken nrisoner and
released again. The men began to doubt the prob-
abilities of getting a cliance at the Fenians this time,
and this threw them into a state of bad humor. After
travelling the following day to Larocque's in St.
Agathe, where we remained over night, we retraced
our steps and arrived home on Tuesday afternoon
after a five days' campaign, sorely disappointed at not
seeing the face of a Fenian.

" FRENCH VOLUNTEERING.

" Before leaving the fort and wliile on our way we
heard a great deal about tlie French volunteers.
Well, we couhi not find a man who saw a Frencli
volunteer on the way, further than a few men under
that well-tried and sterling loyalist Wm. Dease, and
a few scouts from Winnipeg under Captain Plainval.

" On the 3rd of October the proclamation was
issued ; by next day it was nobly responded to by
the English ; and on the eighth, when, as far as ia

THE FENIAN RAID.

221

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known, the danger was entirely past and not a Fenian
remained in the country, the French offered their
services — what patriotism !

" Before the men dispersed, they halted at the par-
sonage, and gave three hearty cheers for the Rev.
George Young, their worthy chaplain, who, through
commendable self-denial, accompanied the little ex-
pedition from the start, and who preached on Sunday
a most eloquent sermon. Too much praise cannot be
given the reverend gentleman, for, if there be one man
who has acted a soldierly, manly part in the affairs of
this country, that man is well-known to be the Rev.
George Young."

In the midst of these excitements, a correspondence
of the Lieutenant-Governor with Priest Ritchot, of
St. Norbert, seems worthy of a place in these records,
inasmuch as it throws some light, by obvious impli-
cations at least, upon matters under review :

"St. Boniface, 5th October, 1871.
" To His Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor :

" May it please your Excellency, — In the conversa-
tion which I had the honor to hol<l with you yester-
day we both agreed that it was proper to secure the
influence of Mr. Riel to direct his compatriots in the
present state of affairs, and prevent them taking a
lalse course.

" Upon deep reflection, I take the liberty of re-
marking to your Excellency that inasmuch as Mr.
Riel is in such a position that he cannot act openly
as a citizen, I do not believe that ho should place
himself at their head unless he had some tjuarantee
that his proceedings would be looked upon with
favor by your Excellency.

" ConsjHjuently, I beg leave to ask of you some

222

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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asaurance which will shelter him from any legal pro-
ceeding, at least for the present (pour la circonstance
actuelle).

(Signed) " N. J. Ritchot.

" P.S. — Being about to leave immediately for my
parish, I beg to request your Excellency will kindly
give an answer to the bearer, who will at once bring
it to me. (Signed) " N. J. R."

" Government House, October 5th, 1871.

" Reverend Sir, — Your note has just reached me ;
you speak of the difficulties which might impede any
action of Mr. Riel in coming forward to use his influ-
ence with his fellow-citizens to rally to the support
of the Crown in the present emergency.

" Should Mr. Riel come forward as suggested, he
need be under no apprehension that his liberty shall
be interfered with in any way ; to use your own
language, ' j^our la circonHt-mce actuelle.'

"It is hardly necessary for n\e to add that the
co-operation of the French lialf- breeds and their
leaders in the support of tiie Crown, under present
circumstances, will be very welcome, and cannot be
looked upon otherwise than as entitlivg iJtem to most
favorable consideratior} .

" Let me add that in giving you this assurance with
promptitude, 1 feel myself entitled to be met in the
same spirit.

" The sooner the French half-breeds assume the
attitude in question, the more graceful will be their
action and the more favorable their influence.

" I have the honor to be, Reverend Sir,
*' Yours truly,
(Signed) " H G. Archibald,

" Lieuienant-Govtvnor.
'• Rev. Pere Ritchot,

" St. Norbert."

ill

THE FENIAN RAID.

223

Messrs. Riel, Lepine and Parenteau wrote to Gov-
ernor Archibald as follows :

own

>y.

"St. Vital, 7th October, 1871.

" May it please your Excellency, — We have the
honor of informing you that we highly appreciate
what your Excellency has been pleased to communi-
cate to Rev. Mr. Ritchot, in order that we might be
better able to assist the people to answer your appeal.
As several trustworthy persons have been requested
to inform you, the answer of the Metis has been that
of faithful subjects. Several companies have already
been organized, and others are in process of forma-
tion.

" Your Excellency may rest assured that, without
being enthusiastic, we have been devoted.

" So long as our services will be required you ftiay
rely on us.

" We have the honor to be, etc, etc., . . .

(Signed) "Louis Riel.

"A. D. Lepine.
"R Parenteau.

" To the Honorable G. Archibald, Lieutenant-Gov-
ernor of Manitoba."

To this the Governor caused the following answer
to be made :

" Gentlemen, — I have it in command from His
Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor to acknowledge
the receipt of your note of tliis morning, assuring
His Excellency of the hearty response of the Metis
to the appeal made to them in His Excellency's pro-
clamation.

" You may say to the people, on whose behalf you
write, that His Excellency is much gratified to receive

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224

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

the assurance which he anticipated in his communica-
tion with the Rev. Pere Ritchot, and which your
letter conveys, and that he will take the earliest
opportunity to transmit to His Excellency the Gover-
nor-General this evidence of the loyalty and good
faith of the Metis of Manitoba.

" His Excellency will be pleased to be furnished, as
soon as possible, with a nominal list of the persons in
each pa,rish who desire to enroll in active service in
the pr m^ emergency.

" H] Excellency will rely upon their readiness to
come f« fward the moment they receive notice.

" I have the honor to be, gentlemen,
" Your obedient servant,
(Signed) " W. F. Buchanan,

"Acting Private Secretary.

" To MM. L. Riel, A. D. Lepine, Pierix. Parenteau."

The day following the date of this last letter an
incident transpired which called forth a good deal of
sharp criticism. I quote again from the Liberal :

"THE GOVERNOR AND RIEL.

" We briefly referred in our last to the fact that on
Sunday afternoon, the 8th inst., the Lieutenant-Gov-
ernor was sent for by Louis Riel, who, with about
one hundred of a gang who aided him in his villainies
of 1869 and 1870, took up a position on the east side
of the Red River, opposite Fort Garry.- The sum-
mons was duly and expeditiously answered by His
Honor's appearance among them, and in the blaze of
day, and within a gunshot of the spot where Thomas
Scott was murdered, the Queen's representative shook
hands with the murderer. It will be seen from other
columns that Riel, on hearing of O'Donohue's failure

THE FENIAN RAID.

225

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at Pembina, decided, instead of going to join that
worthy, as was his original intention, on offering his
services to Mr. Archibald. The acceptance of his
services was in entire accordance with the Lieutenant-
Governor's policy. We cannot find language to ex-
press the deep humiliation created in the minds of
the people who witnessed or heard of this climax of
insult to loyal men in the Province."

The results of this correspondence and hand-shak-
ing were such as might have been anticipated. These
well-mounted Metis, headed by Kiel and Lepine, now
volunteered their services as scouts to guard the fron-
tier against further raids that might be attempted, of
which there was not the remotest danger. Their
offer was made for a widely different purpose ; it
was, however, accepted forthwith (shall I say by the
unsuspecting Governor ?), and as soon as duly supplied
with provisions, etc., etc., they left to go where they
pleased and enjoy themselves as they well knew how
to do. A detachment of this somewhat belated
scouting force paid a visit to a small settlement of
loyal Protestants at Boyne River, sixty miles distant
from Winnipeg, where I was accustomed to hold ser-
vices and do pastoral work. The object of their visit
seemed to the settlers to be to terrorize, in order to
induce them to promise to give up their " claims " in
this ple.isant and well-wooded locality and go else-
where in quest of homes. They were told that they
were authorized to stake out claims for themselves in
that section, and that they would return before long
and build their houses on them. At my next visit to

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?26

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

fne settlement, when this was reported to me, I
advised the people, who were considerably disturbed
by this visit from the " scouts," to rest quietly and
await further developments. As I was returning
across the forty-mile stretch of unoccupied prairie, I
saw in the distance quite a number of these mounted
volunteers who where provisioned to guard thr^
frontier, but who, having tired, I suppose, of their
hardships and privations in soldiering, were then
" homeward bound." They never returned to disturb
the Boyne River settlers, and it was well for them-
selves that they did not.

Thus ended the farce that followed the fizzle, and
yet the two combined occasioned another "call to
arms " in Ontario, and another heavy expenditure to
the Dominion Government, in the sending out of a
second expedition undir Captain Scott to reinforce
the company in Fort Garry, and so to be the better
prepared to deal with either raiders or insurrectionists
that might require attention. This expedition of two
hundred men left CoUingwood on the 21st of October,
1871, reached Port Arthur on the 24th, and arrived
within twelve miles of the North- West Angle of the
Lake of the Woods on the 12th of November, where
they were compelled to leave their boats and march
across the newly formed ice to the road leading to
Fort Garry, and proceeding thence, in intensely cold
weather, arrived at the fort on November 18th —
a marvellous march certainly under such circum-
stances — 110 miles in a little over four days. The
journey from CoUingwood to Winnipeg was performed
in eighteen days.

me, I
turbed
ly and
uining
airie, I
ounted
:d thn
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e then
iisturb

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call to

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228

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

In January, 1872, Riel and Lepine consented to
retire from Manitoba, and of course cease agitating
the people for a time, in consideration of receiving
each the sum of $1,600, while provision was to be
made for their families for a period of not less than a
year. They had found it so profitable to agitate and
cause an insurrection, and then to seize the fort and
its contents of goods and food, and liquors and money,
and then to imprison many of their former neighbors
and confiscate horses, sleighs and robes, and even
money, in 1869 and 70, that now in 1872 they seemed
to think that their demands for almost any sum, as
an inducemant to retire, should at once be met.

So much tor the " peace at any price policy." And
what seems almost incredible, this was being done in
the same Dominion in which and while a reward of
$5,000 was being offered for their arrest ; a portion of
which, if not all, was paid subsequently to those who
took part in the arrest of parties implicated to some
extent in the murder of Scott. Jn his restless ambi-
tion for position and power, Riel returned to Manitoba
and was elected by these loyal (?) Metis to represent
Provencher in the Dominion Parliament.

On the 30th of March, 1874, he appeared at Ottawa,
and, signing the roll of the House, quickly vanished,
and on the 16tli of April he was duly and deservedly
expelled.

A revelation, both encouraging and admonitory,
followed this contemptible fizzle :

First. — The loyalty, bravery and reliability of the
Protestant sections of the population were revealed
as never before.

THE FENIAN RAID.

229

And

Second. — There was also a fuller disclosure of the
extent to which the Metis were controlled by unpat-
riotic injduences than many had hitherto suspected.

Third. — That the real motive of those who com-
bined to bring about this raid and the consequent
disturbance, was not so much conquest as intimida-
tion, in order to an amnesty for Riel and Lepine and
their coadjutors in rebellion and crime, and for
"better terms" for the French half-breed element.
In this I dv^ubt not they acted under dictation. The
volunteers, whether Canadians or natives, who rallied
around the old flag and followed it to meet the foe,
required no urging from their clergy to induce them
to take up arms for the defence of the country, and
certainly they received no instructions to clamor for
" better terms " before consenting to do so. Had all
pursued a similar course, a better state of things
would have speedily obtained throughout the country.

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1:1

CHAPTER XV.

THE FIRST MANITOBA MISSIONARY
CONFERENCE.

In accordance with our request, the Board of Mis-
sions appointed a deputation to visit Winnipeg and
meet, for consultation, etc., the missionaries from the
interior, who should be called together for that pur-
pose. On the 16th of February, 1872, I received the
following telegram from the Mission Rooms, Toronto :

" Summon missionaries of both Districts to meet
deputation, Punshon, Wood and Macdonald, August
first, at Winnipeg.

(Signed) " Wood and Taylor."

Of course I did as bid, and the brethren were not
disobedient to the authoritative summons. Of the
deputation, Dr. Wood was the first to arrive, and a
most trying trip for one of his age he had from
Moorehead to Winnipeg by stage. Two days and two
nights it took, amid dust and mosquitoes, for the old
tumble-down rig to bring its passengers through.
The good doctor arrived at our parsonage at midnight
very much exhausted, and next day wired Dr. Pun-
shon and Mr. Macdonald at Moorehead to be sure and

PiRSt MANITOBA MISSIONARY CONFERENCE. 231

connect with the steamer on Red River and not ome
by stage. And it was well for them that they heeded
his warning.

As the missionaries and the other members had not
yet arrived, Dr. Wood, after resting for a few days,
accompanied me on a trip to Portage la Prairie, High
Bluff and Poplar Point, which involved a drive of
120 miles, in order that he might personally look
over the ground and judge of the present condition
of the work and its future prospects. Services were
held at several points, and the doctor returned, pleased
with the country and the people he had met and the
prospects.

Soon after our return the missionaries from the
regions beyond reported at the parsonage, as did
the remainder of the deputation. All were in ad-
vance of the time appointed in the summons sent us
over the wires, and therefore, instead of August first,
our conference opened on July 26th, 1872, in our
first Grace Church. During the few days following,
ere the brethren separated, we enjoyed the great pri-
vilege of hearing two of Dr. Punshon's inimitable
lectures, which were well attended and highly appre-
ciated by the people ; he also preached on the Sabbath
in the morning, Dr. Wood preaching in the evening.
By all it was accounted a rare privilege indeed to
hear these lectures and discourses from such honored
and gifted ministers.

For a description of the conference and its work I
cannot do better than quote the report presented to
the Board of Missions by the deputation on their

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232

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

return to Ontario. The report was 'presented at the
annual meeting of the Board, held on this occasion in
the town of Brockville, and was as follows :

"REPORT OF THE DEPUTATION APPOINTED TO VISIT

MANITOBA.

" By the President's direction, the missionaries in
the Red River and Saskatchewan Districts were sum-
moned to meet the deputation at Winnipeg on the 1st
of August. Through the good providence of God the
whole of the brethren were in Winnipeg — with the
exception of J. Sinclair, native teacher at Oxford
House — on Tuesday, the 23rd of July. One party
had been travelling twenty-five days, and another
twenty days. These were from the Saskatchewan
District, who, having their horses and travelling
equipage, preferred camping on the prairie, in the
vicinity of the town, during the whole of their stay,
choosing the air and freedom of such a home before
the best accommodation they could have in the
houses of friends who would willingly have received
them as guests for their works' sake.

" The deputation being completed on the 25th, by
the arrival of Messrs. Punshon and Macdonald, the
following are the names of the members who consti-
tuted the meeting, which began its conversations
upon the state of the work of God in this vast coun-
try, on the morning of July 26th, 1872, in the Wes-
leyan Church, Winnipeg, Province of Manitoba :

" The Rev. W. Morley Punshon, LL.D., President of
the Conference ; Rev. E. Wood, D.D., Secretary of the
Missionary Society ; and J. Macdonald, Esq., Treasurer
of the Society, deputation from the Committee and
Conference. Rev. George Young, Winnipeg, Chairman
of the Red River District; Rev. George McDougall,

FIRST MANITOBA MISSIONARY CONFERENCE. 233

Edmonton House, Chairman of the Saskatchewan
District; Rev. Michael Fawcett, High Bluff; Rev.
Matthew Robison, High Bluff; Rev. Henry B. Stein-
hauer, White Fish Lake ; Rev. Peter Campbell, Vic-
toria; Rev. John McDougall, Woodville; Rev. E. R.
Young, Rossville, Norway House ; Rev. A. Bowerman,
Winnipeg. A candidate for the ministry, George
Edwards, employed by the Chairman, was also
present.

" After religious exercises the first question which
engaged the attention of the meeting was the spirit-
ual state of the several missions. The deputation
heard, with pleasure and gratitude to Almighty God,
that at all the stations occupied by the Society the
' signs ' ol true evangelical prosperity exist. This they
attribute, in connection with the Holy Spirit's influ-
ence, to the devotedness of the missionaries to their
high calling, other testimony than their own being
given that they pay no more attention to the seculari-
ties of life than what they are compelled to do from
a sense of duty in providing for the wants of them-
selves and families, and presenting an example of
industry in their domestic arrangements for the con-
verted Indians to imitate.

" The congregations in Winnipeg vary much, as the
people arrive and depart to other locations. The
building will easily accommodate 250 ; at times the
place is crowded with a devout assemblage. The
means of grace peculiar to us as a Church have
been established by Mr. Young, and are much appre-
ciated by the more spiritually minded. Up to the
time of the visit of the deputation, the only week-
evening service among Protestants in the town was
held by Mr. Young. Besides supplying Winnipeg,
the missionary has extended his visits occasionally to
a distance of sixty miles — hence Boyne River, Stur-
geon Creek, Headingly, and Victoria Settlement are

5 .

I' i'

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2S4

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

places where he has been welcomed as a minister of
Christ. Now that an assistant has been given him,
and the population at these appointments being
rapidly on the increase, the prospects of usefulness
are very cheering.

"The High Bluff Mission was visited, embracing
Poplar Point and Portage la Prairie Mr. Robison's
labors here have been greatly blessed. The people
highly appreciate the ordinances established among
them. In addition to the two churches already built,
preparations are being made for one at Gowler's and
another at the Portage. Mr. Fawcett has entered
upon his labors here in a ciieerful and self-denying
spirit. The deputation regret the inconveniences he
and his crnhr devoted wife had to endure for the
want of household accommodation. Should success
attend the efforts made for the erection of a parson-
age, or the hiring for the time being of a house to
shelter themselves, we may anticipate continued pros-
perity in the discharge of his ministerial duties, and
of those associated with him in this truly missionary
field.

" Settlements are forming beyond the Portage,
which have already been visited by the Society's
missionaries, and as these extend and increase in
numbers they should secure our practical sympathies
by sending to them additional laborers.

" The statements of the Rev. E. R. Young respecting
Norway House Mission were full of encouragement.
Far away from the many allurements to evil which
beset other Indian communities — especially in Ontario
— these converts display a ccjnsistency of deportment,
attention to the means of grace, and practical remem-
brance of religiout'. instruction, which result in an
intelligent growth in Christian knowledge and expe-
rience. Beside visiting Oxford House, and adminis-
tering the ordinances to the members of the Church

FIRST MAI^ITOBA MISSIONARY CONFERENCE. 235

Inent.

hich

Itario

[lent,

iieiii-

li an

xpe-

linis-

lurch

there, wliich is more than two hundred miles north-
east of his own mission, his visits to Nelson and
Berens Rivers have been attended with great success.
At one time he met at Nelson River 250 Indians : of
these 110 have been baptized, seventy of whom were
aduLs. Several of these were at Winnipeg, and
sought an interview with the deputation for the pur-
pose of entreating them to send a teacher to their
people. Two of them belonged to bands five hundred
miles still farther north. The whole region is purely
a fur-bearing country ; the people are unsettled and
migratory in their habits, and yet hundreds of them
are calling for that knowledge which can only be
imparted by the Bible and the servants of God. The
most feasible plan for supplying hhese wants, as it
appeared to the deputation, w^ould be to employ one
or more native agencies, and allow the missionaries
at Rossville to direct their labors, and administer the
ordinances of religion at their gatherings each year
for purposes of trade. The months of April and May,
and August and September, are the best times of the
year for meeting large numbers of Indians at Nelson
River and other places. Norway House is 340 miles
north of Fort Garrv ; and Berens River, where the
Hudson Bay Company have a trading post, a little
more than half way to the Rossville Mission, being
on the eastern shores of Lake Winnipeg, 180 miles
distant. Coiniected with this is Pigeon River, the
residence of a small band, ten miles by water and six
by land from Berens River. There are 250 Indians,
all accessible to your missionary, sixty eight of whom
have given in their names for Church membei*shij),
and ten of whom Mr. E. R. Youn^r pronounces to be
soundly converted to God. The land in this locality
is very good for Hcttlcment, and the fisheries inex-
liaustible. As Rossville is becoming overcrowded,
and the soil there for agricultural purposes only

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

limited, if the Society establish a substantial mission
at Berens River, having the same spiritual advan-
tages which are enjoyed at Rossville, no doubt a
number of Indian families would make Berens River
their home, and thereby constitute a growing, healthy
mission station, midway between Red River and
Norway House. The Indian will leave his hunting
and trapping and hesitate not to travel 150 miles, if
necessary, to attend sacramental service : and that,
too, without any reliance upon ritualistic merit, but
purely from the love of Christ in his heart, and obe-
dience to the law of his Divine Master. It was
reported to the deputation that for the want of ordi-
nances once enjoyed at a mission station five hundred
miles away from Rossville — transferred some years
since by the parent Society to another branch of the
Church of Christ — thirty-five members had removed
the whole of this distance to Rossville for no other
reason than that they might enjoy class and prayer-
meetings, in addition to what they called a different
ministry, without which they declared they could
not live.

" From the long period of time Oxford House has
been loft without an ordained missiijnary, there are
not the same gratifying features of life and vigor
existing there which we all earnestly desire. In the
judgment of the deputation, this post should imme-
diately receive the appointment of a minister in full
standing. Whilst approving of the appointment, by
Mr. E. R. Young, of the excellent broth ar now at
Berens River, yet the authorities of the Church
would act ([uite in accordance with the importance
of the work if they a])pointed an ordained man to
take charge of this station, and for which, in addition
to the free-will ofica-ings of generous and esteemed
friends, it is hoped the connnittee will make suitable
appropriations. ,

FIRST MANITOBA MISSIONAllY CONFERENCE. 237

ission
ivan-
ibt a
River
lalthy
• and
Lnting
lies, it'

that,
it, but
i obe-
b was

ordi-
indred

years
the
moved

other
tayer-
ferent

could

le has
e are
vigor
n the

"Lengthy conversations were held upon the re-
ligious state of the work at Edmonton House, Wood-
ville, Victoria, and White Fish Lake — Saskatchewan
District — from which the deputation received favor-
able impressions of the present healthy and prosper-
ous condition of all the missions. The two day-
schools have received much support from the Hon.
Hudson Bay Company's officers, and the settlers
who have located where these are in operation. The
deputation are convinced +hat the brethren there are
truly devoted to their work ; and whilst they have
been preserved amidst many dangers in their frequent
and laborious journey, God has graciously owned
their testimony of the truth as it is in Jesus, so that
the Cree and the Stoney join their songs of praise for
converting grace with their more favored brethren,
* the pale faces.' The deputation commend to the
committee a new post selected bj'^ the Chairman, of the
Bow River, as a most favorable point to operate
among the Blackfeet, whose disposition to receive a
missionary is now very earnest, but whose wants
cannot be fully met until anothei missionary is sent
to that District, which they hope will not fail to be
done early in the ensuing spring.

" Upon the subject of education, the deputation
desire to draw the attention of the Church to the
desirableness of an early effort to establish a college at
Winnipeg. Mr. Macdonald was requested to name
this to Governor Smith, from whom he received the
assurance that if the Wesleyan Church entered into
this enterprise the Hudson Bay Company would
provide gratuitously sufficient land for this purpose.
A day-school should also be established at Oxford
House, Woodville, and Edmonton House.

" The deputation feel much indebted to Governor
Smith for the great courtesy and hospitality which
they received from him during their stay at Fort

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

Garry, and for the interest which he and other officers
of the company ohowed, especially in the trouble and
expense incurred in fitting up accommodations in their
commodious new warehouse for Dr. Punshon's lecture
on the evening of the 30th of July. This large and
respectable assemblage was presided over by His
Excellency Governor Archibald, whose attendance at
the ordination service, in addition to this, evinced a
catholicity of spirit encouraging to all laborers in the
Church of Christ. The proceeds of this lecture, and
one delivered in the Wesleyan Church on the previous
Friday evening, when Jas. W. Taylor, Esq., American
Consul, presided, were generously presented by the
President toward the liquidation of the debt upon our
church and parsonage. The religious services excited
much interest in the settlement, and were seasons of
profit and delight.

"In conclusion, the deputation congratulate the
committee on having brethren in these Districts of
whom gentlemen in high authority spea'. with great
respect, and hold them in much esteem as Christian
ministers ; and for them and their work they bespeak
a continued manifestation of that confidence, sympa-
thy, and liberality which have hitherto marked all
their dealings with those new and distant missions.
Considering the vast extent of their work, their
appeals for a few extra grants are not very large, to
which it is hoped a cheerful response will be given.
They would also press upon the attention of the
committee the following resolution, being deeply con-
vinced that great good will result from its being
practically, and at an early day, complied with :

" Moved by the Rev. George Young, seconded by
the Rev. George McDougall, 'That it is the unani-
mous judgment of this meeting that the remoter
missions of these Districts should be visited by an
officer of the Society, or a senior member of the Con-

FIRST MANITOBA MISSIONARY CONFERENCE. 239

fficers
e and
I their
ecture
e and
■f His
ice at
iced a
in the
e, and
evious
erican
)y the
on our
ixcited
ona of

te the

icts of

great

istian

speak

mpa-

ed all

?sions.

their

rge, to

[given.

^f the

con-

being

id by
inani-
Irnoter
pv an
"Con-

ference ; and we earnestly solicit the General Com-
mittee to make arrangements for this desirable object
as early as practicable.'

"In the accomplishment of so long a journey, the
deputation would gratefully acknowledge their in-
debtedness to the goodness of God in preserving them
from harm. Two of them experienced a remarkable
deliverance from imminent peril on the waters of
Lake Superior, in interposition of Divine mercy to
many others embarked in the same steamer with
Messrs. Punshon and Macdonald, which resulted in
voluntary thank-offerings that will greatly assist in
the erection of Providence Church in Prince Arthur's
Landing, commemorative of their marvellous rescue,
and their heartfelt gratitude to Almighty God."

I deem it appropriate to insert here the concluding
paragraph in the Minutes of the Conference which
was taken by myself as Secretary :

" The business for which the missionaries had been
called together having been finished, appropriate and
affectionate farewell addresses and counsels were
given by the lay Treasurer, Mr. Macdonald : the Rev.
Dr. Wood and President Punshon, after which the
539th hymn was sung and the Divine blessing in-
voked upon the missions throughout, as well as upon
the missionaries in their long, tiresome and perilous
journeys, and their flocks in the distance. The meet-
ing closed with the benediction from the President."

The following extracts are from addresses given at
the Brock ville meeting by the late John Macdonald,
Esq., and the late Rev. Dr. Punshon :

Mr. Macdonald said : " It may be expected that
I may have a few words to say about the Red River,

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

being one of the deputation to that distant part of
our work. Time was when a visit to that land, the
Red River of the North, meant a long and fatiguing
journey. To reach it from Toronto it was necessary
first to go to Montreal, to follow the old canoe route
of the Hudson Bay Company, by water and portage,
to be bitten and tortured by mosquitoes, as our good
President was, to reach that land maimed and
wounded, and then to be shut out from civilization for
years, perhaps for many of them. The journey itself
was onr which could be undertaken only by those of
rugged constitution, those having great powers of
endurance, and these would be abundantly called into
exercise before he reached the end of his journey.
The land itself was a sealed land, apart from the
traders of the Hudson Bay Company ; none but some
hardy venturer undertook that journey, and he, when
he ventured, became as much an object of wonder as
he would hav^e been had he been an Arctic explorer;
and should he furnish a paper on that country less
important than it is in the power of the members of
this deputation to furnish, he was as certain as he
was a living man to be made a member of the Royal
Geographical Society. All this is now changed. We
came back not to find that we were objects of wonder
— not to be feted or made members of the Senate, for
contributions which we have made to the existing
knowledge of that country, but to find that we are
only ordinary mortals ; that we have done only what
you may do, and do so quickly that your friends will
scarcely notice your absence. The land is no longer
a sealed land ; you can now reach it by lake and
railroad in a few days ; and although our visit has
been so recent, yet since then railroad communica-
tion has been extended within seventy miles of Fort
Garry ; so that now even an invalid can go there and
not only be none the worse, but much the better for

part of
ad, the
biguing
cessary
e route
)ortage,
ir good
}d and
tion for
ly itself
ihose of
wers of
led into
ourney.
om the
at some
lC, when
►nder as
cplorer ;
try less
ibers of
as he
Royal
Id. We
onder
late, for
Ixisting
|we are
what
Tds will
longer
:e and
bit has
lunica-
)f Fort
[re and
Iter for

FIRST MANITOBA MISSIONARY CONFERENCE. 241

the journey. Sir George Simpson, in a work which
he published of a ' Voyage Round the World,' spoke
of that district as amazingly fertile, very salubrious,
and large enough to receive the millions from the over-
crowded cities of the Old World. When examined
before a select committee of the British House of
Commons, he withdrew any statement of the kind,
and represented it as unfit for settlement, and the
climate so uncertain as to render the growing of
grain very precarious. The Hudson Bay Company,
I have no doubt, discovered, ere this, that their in-
terest lies in diffusing information about the country,
not withholding it, and that in proportion as the land
is opened up their own interests will be promoted.
Well, I will not detain you with the journey down
the river, beautiful as it is ; of the tortuous windings
of the river, so many that a distance of two hundred
and fifty miles by land is extended to about seven
hundred miles by river, where all the bends in the
river are so alike that you cannot tell one from the
other, and all so beautiful that despite the unvarying
sameness you can look at them da}'^ after day with-
out tiring, and feel that

' A thi ig of beauty is a joy forever.*

Nor am I going to speak to you about the boundless
prairie, stretching away for a thousand miles, and I
cannot tell how much farther — and fertile as bound-
less. Nor am I going to speak of the climate, charri-
ing as that was when I was there, and pleasant arid
healthful as I was told the winters were. Nor am T
going to speak of the political opinions that prevail,
for J hold that a Society like this should have nothing
to do with political parties. Their work is to do good
to the bodies as well as to the souls of men, without
reference to their politics, nationality or creed. My
remarks must have reference only to our work there.

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

"You will remember that the effort for the building
of the Fort Garry church originated at the meeting
of this committee in Guelph four years ago. That
was the first meeting of this committee at which the
President sat, and his name was at the head of the
subscription list. Very wise was the election of the
Rev. George Young for that work, who has so labored
as to have secured the confidence of all classes of the
community. His circuit to-da^ is one of the most
desirable in the Dominion. The church property
itself is a beautiful property ; the church, as chaste
as any that I have seen in any of the rural districts.
The windows are all of beautiful stained glass, and
four designs in the centre show that they have been
the gifts of the Sunday-schools from Main Street,
Mount Zion, Centenary, Hamilton; North Street,
London ; Ottawa, Brantford, Picton, and Quebec. I
do not remember seeing Brockville, but any neglect
there you purpose, I am persuaded, correcting now.
Of the church itself, an Indian who came with Rev.
E. R. Young from Norway House said, on seeing it,
* This is very beautiful. I am going to heav ^-n, and
I hope it will be as beautiful as this.' At the request
of the other members of the deputation, I brought
under the notice of the Governor of the Hudson Bay
Company, the Hon. Donald SnHh, the matter of a
grant in Winnipeg for an educational establishment,
and with the same princely conduct which marked
all the other acts of that Company toward the mem-
bers of the deputation, Mr. Smith said a suitable
grant would be given ; in fact, all that would be
needed ; and when you are told that fifty-feet lots
were sold in Fort Garry, while we were there, for
two thousand dollars, you will understand that such
a grant means money. If we are to do our work
there as we should, we must have our educational
establi'^hment. The Church of England has ope.

FIRST MANITOBA MISSIONARY CONFERENCE. 243

; ti

lilding
eeting
That
ch the
of the
of the
abored
of the
e most
operty
chaste
Lstricta.
,ss, and
e been
Street,
Street,
bee. I
neglect
Ig now.
jh Rev.
eing it,
?n, and
equest
rought
n Bay
r of a
hment,
arked
mem-
litable
lid be
3t lots
Ire, for
lit such
work
itional
Is ope.

The Free Church has one. We should have one.
We want about $3,000 to commence this work, and
we have good hope that we will get it to-night. I
was in hopes, sir, that you would have the honor of
commencing this work, as Oshawa had the honor —
that is the Sunday-school — of contribating the bell,
the only one in Winnipeg. And let me say of this
bell, that i^i not only calls to the house of God, but
during days of ^darkness, when the land was in the
midst of a rebellion, it rang out not only sounds of
deliverance to the settlers, but sounds of welcome to
our volunteers who came to their help. Well, sir, I
have in my hands a note about this scheme : If it be
true (and you as a politician will know whether it is
or not) that one vote before twelve o'clock is worth
two after, then wha^ I am about to announce will
have an important bearing upon this effort. Mr.
John Torrance, who, I regret, is unable to be with us,
writes me with a readiness and liberality which char-
acterize all his efforts in connection with our funds,
to put him down for $250. That is a good com-
mencement, and, I think, assures us of the result.
The resolution with which I am entrusted has matter
enough to enable one to speak for a month; it speaks
of ' gratitude to Cod, spiritual success, enlarged in-
come, Divine promises, providential openings, and
increased liberality.' Now, upon this I must only
venture a few words : Why the increased wealth
which is flowing in so abundantly to Christ's people ?
Is it to make them increasingly sordid ? Is it to lead
them to say that they have much goods laid up for
many years ? What does the remarkable prosperity
of the past few years — the most remarkably pros-
perous, perhaps, the world has ever seen — say to us ?
* Speak to the people that they go forward.' . . .
I am to be followed by the President, and must not
longer detain you, but trust that this evening we
shall raise the amount we require for this institution.

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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^■■■'^■..^

1
i

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liA.^

The Rev. Dr. Punshoii, in seconding the third
resohition, said : " My friend Mr. Macdonald, in mov-
ing this resolution, said it was one on which a speech
might be made for a month. But I am not disposed
to make a speech to-night, and were I so disposed,
the taste and temper of this congregation are not, at
this hour, disposed to listen. But one thing you have
the opportunity of doing, under the influence of what
you have lieard — that is, to follow dp the challenge
given in reference to the proposed institution at
Manitoba. 1 must say, I don't like this pronuncia-
tion of Manito6a, this Fren^^hified mode which some
purists have adapted. But Mr. Macdonald has really
stolen my speech. I have been dwelling on the hope
of gi'^iiig some account of my visit, in company with
him and with Dr. Wood, to the Red River country.
In this, however, he has anticipated me. I may just
note, with respect to our country, that while it was
interesting, it was a most eventful journey. We
were mercifully delivered from the disaster of ship-
wreck after we had crossed from Sarnia, and were
approaching the opposite side. I shall not soon
forget what I then witnessed of the wonders of
the Lord on that wonderful lake. After reaching
Duluth, we proceeded by the Northern Pacific Rail-
road. From what we witnessed in this land journey,
and from a sense of dut}^ to carry out the advice of
Mr. Wesley, to 'go not only to those who want us,
but to those who want us most,' there are many
places through which we passed in the United States
to which we should send missionaries. Of these I
may mention Brainard, a village on the bank of the
Mississippi. I cannot tell whether or not it is named
lifter the celebrated mission axy, and therefore predes-
tinated to be missionary ground. It is a little city
in a forest. Eaeh inhabitant seems to have cut away
the trees only that were required to give space for his

v^- >',

.^'.^^

third
a mov-
speech
isposed
sposed,
not, at
►u have
)f what
allenge
bion at
nuncia-
h some
3 really
le hope
ly with
iountry.
lay just
s it was

J-

)f ship-
d were
)t soon
lers of
iaehing
c Rail-
3urney,
vice of
lant us,
many
States
hese I
of the
named
redes-
le city
away
Ifor his

FinST MANITOBA MISSIONARY CONFERENCE. 245

house. Thus there were presented vistas most pic-
turesque and beautiful. This town dates from a year
ago last month, and has now about eight hundred
inhabitants. We passed through it twice, once on
our outward journey, and again, after an absence of
three weeks, on our return, and in that short time
one man had been shot, one stabbed, and two Indians
were tried by Lynch law, and strung upon tall trees
in front of a saloon, with the appropriate name of
* The Last Turn.' We certainly might send mission-
aries there with advantage if we had the means, if
only to teach them reverence for human life. Then
there was the town of Moorehead, of which Dr.
Wood has a pleasant and salubrious remembrance.
There every second dwelling is a gambling-house, a
dance-house, or a saloon. There is no church, no
school, no Sabbath, every one carries arms, and as
one of their own citizens remarked, ' It is a dull day
which passes without a shooting.' Possibly some
missionary effort might not be wasted there. You
may imagine that travelling is not altogether pleas-
ant in these parts. I say nothing of the voyage
down the Red River for seven hundred miles, nor of
the mosquitoes — as blood-thirsty cannibals as ever
stuck spears into human flesh — nor of the discomfort
of the steamboat, nor of the tortuous character of
the river, which winds so persistently and so ex-
tremely, that we passed by a man's house on two
sides of it, and were half an hour by the watch in
getting from one side to the other. I pass on to
notice our work. Our first Sabbath in Winnipeg was
a high day. First, we had a love-feast in the morn-
ing, starting in good Methodist fashion ; then, in the
forenoon, I preached, after which the ordination of
the Rev. John McDougall took place. In the after-
1 on we held a missionary meeting. In the evening
Dr. Wood occupied the pulpit ; and this remarkable

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MANITOBA MfiMORiES.

day closed with the administration of the Sacrament
of the Lord's Slipper, at which were present Chris-
tians of all colors, white and red and yellow, all
animated by the one hope, and rejoicing in the one
Saviour. We were made glad in witnessing these
results of missionary toil."

As the result of this Conference the Mission Rooms
became not only better acquainted with the vastness
and importance of the work in which we were
engaged, but with the necessity of increasing the
staff of laborers, as well as the appropriations to
these toilers in order to secure greater progress.

After the many allusions in the preceding remarks
of Mr. Macdonald and Dr. Punshon re the Red River
of the North, the following correspondence and poem
will not be, to many at least, void of interest.

THE BELLS OF ST. BONIFACE.

In a poem by John Greenleaf Whittier, " The Red
River Voyageur," there is a beautiful allusion to the
" bells of the Roman Mission," now the Arch-episco-
pate of St. Boniface, " calling to the boatman on the
river and the hunter on the plain," and invoking at
the close of life's voyage " the signal of release in the
bells of the Holy City, the chimes of eternal peace."
Archbishop Tache, returning from his late visit to
Montreal, was remliiJed by Lieutenant-Governor
Schultz that the 17th of December was the eighty-
fourth birthday of the poet, and His Honor suggested
that the anniversary should be greeted by a joy-peal
from the tower of the cathedral of St. Boniface. His

FIRST MANITOBA MISSIONARY COKFERENCE. 247

rament
Chris-
3W, all
the one
r these

Rooms
astness
J were
(ig the
ons to

3mark3
1 River
1 poem

e Red
;o the
spisco-
on the
ing at
in the
3eace."
sit to
t^ernor
ghty-
^ested
^-peal
His

Grace cordially concurred, waiving the usage that
the bells should cease their chimes after the Angelus,
and the graceful tribute was directed and rendered at
midnight with the last stroke of the clock ushering
the natal day. Mr. Whittier, having been informed
of the incident by U. S. Consul Taylor, addrcdsed the
following letter to Archbishop Tache, who kindly
consented, at our request, to its publication, as follows :

" Newburyport, Mass., 3 mo. 5, 1892.
" To Archbishop Tache :

" My Dear Friend, — During my illness from the
prevailing epidemic, which confined me nearly the
whole winter, and from which I am but very slowly
recovering, a letter from the U. S. Consul at Winnipeg
informed me of thy pleasant recognition of my little
poem, " The Red River Voyageur " (written nearly
forty years ago), by the ringing of " The Bel] : of St.
Boniface " on the eve of my late anniversary.

" I was at the time quite unable to respond, but I
feel that I should be wanting in due appreciation of
such a marked compliment if I did not, even at this
late hour, express to thee my heartfelt thanks. I
have reached an age when literary success and mani-
festations of popular favor have ceased to satisfy one
upon whom the solemnity of life's sunset is resting ;
but such a delicate and beautiful tribute has deeply
moved me. I shall never forget it. I shall hear the
bells of St. Boniface sounding across the continent,
and awakening a feeling of gratitude for thy generous
act. With renewed thanks, and the prayer that our
Heavenly Father may continue to make thee largely
instrumental in His service, I am,

" Gratefully and respectfully,
"Thy friend,

"John G. Whittier."

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MAN^ITOBA MEMOniES.

Thinking it possible that the poem which had been
the occasion of this exchange of delightful greetings
may be unfamiliar to some of our readers, and
knowing that it will be welcome to all, it is here
republished :

"The Red River Voyageur.

" Out aiiJ in the river is winding
The links of its long, red chain,
Through belts of dusky j ine land
And gusty leagues of plain.

" Only at times, a smoke wreath

With the drifting cloud-rack joins —
The smoke of the hunting lodges
Of the wild Assiniboines.

" Drearily blows the north wind
From the land of ice and snow ;
The pyes that look ar' weary.
And heavy the hands that row.

*' And v/ith one foot on the water,
And (me u[)on the shore,
The Angel of Shadow gives wari.'ng
That day shall be no more.

" Is it the clang of wild geese,
Is it the Indian's yell,
That lends to the voice of the north wind
The tones of a far-oft' bell i

III

J.,., .

" The voyagcur smiles as he listens
To the sound tliat grt)ws apace ;
Well ho knows the vesper ringing
Of the bells of St. Boniface.

lad been

Teetings

2rs, and

is here

PtRSt MANITOBA MISSIONARY CONFERENCE. 249

" The bells of the Roman Mission,
That call from their turrets twahi,
To the boatman on the river,
To the hunter on the plain.

" Even so in our mortal journey
The bitter north winds blow,
And thus upon life's Red River,
Our hearts, as oarsmen, row.

" And when the Angel of Shadow
Rests his feet on wave and shore,
And our eyes grow dim with watching,
And our hearts faint at the oar,

" Hapi)y is he who hearetli
The signal of his release
In the bells of the Holy City,
. The chimes of eternal jieace. "

I ' I

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CHAPTER XVI.

DR. LACHLAN TAYLORS WONDERFUL TOUR
AMONG THE MISSIONS IN THE " GREAT

LONE land:'

The incorporation of the following most interest-
ing account by our now departed brother, of his long
tour of " inspection," will, I am sure, gratify large
numbers, many of whom have never before enjoyed
the opportunity of reading it. He and his fellow-
traveller, George McDougall, have long since rested
from their toils for the Master :

" In pursuance of the important object of the
mission to which I was appointed, I left Toronto May
5th, 1873, en route for Manitoba and the great North-
West. Arriving at Chicago the following morning,
we remained a few hours examining the growth and
progress of the city, and the marvellous and in-
credible rapidity with which its miles of ruins by the
disastrous conflagration are being restored ; the city
rising from its ashes with far more than its former
magnificence and splendor.

" We left in the evening for St. Paul, and thence
by the North-Western and the great North Pacific
Railway for Moorehcad on the Red River. On
arriving, we found that we were most fortunate in
the time spent in Chicago, as it abridged by so many
hours our stay in Moorehead. The steamer having got

TOUR
AT

nterest-
lis long
y large
mjoyed
fellow-
rested

of the
o May
North-
)rning,
h and
d in-
y the
,ie city
brmer

:hence
*acific
On

[ite in
niany
ig got

t)R. LACHLAiC TAYLOR's TOUR.

251

in a few hours before us, would have to discharge her
cargo and take on a large freight before we set out
for our destination, but, on the whole, limiting our
stay to ten or twelve hours in the meanest and
muddiest village we met in all our travels, and the
crossing of whose principal street when we were there,
was like crossing the Rubicon, for none wanted to
repeat or try it again.

" The Red River is one of the most tortuous and
crooked rivers in America, sometimes almost doubling
upon itself like a great boa constrictor, running nine
hundred miles from its source in Dakota to where it
empties into Lake Winnipeg, falling only two hun-
dred feet in six hundred miles; its valley being
twenty thousand square miles, a territory as large is
both the States of Vermont and New Hampshire, and,
like Manitoba generally, the richest soil I have
seen since I left the banks of the Nile ; and as the
heavily-laden steamer, towing two scows loaded to
the water-edge, moved slowly on, and the river being
very high, we had a fine chance when we came to ouv
own country of surveying the prairie from the upper
deck, which contrasted favorably with Minnesota and
Dakota, being more elevated and dryer, and if only
half cultivate<l, would wave with golden grain and
garnered liarvests, richly rewarding the tillers' toil.

"On May 14th, the ninth day after leaving To-
ronto, we sighted Fort Garry and the thrifty and
prosperous little town (now the city) of Winnipeg.
W^e were still more delighted to have pointed out to us
as we neared, what they called Mr. Young's church,
which, with its neat red roof, is one of the most con-
spicuous objects in the little city, the futuvj; metro-
j)olis of the grcjiit North- West. I washiglily pleased,
as our noble deputation the preceding y^^ar must have
been, to find that Mr. Young, in securing the large
and valuable lot on which the premises stand, had

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

^11 ii

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IM:

made the very best selection he could have done, as it
is, from the growth of the town towards the fort, in
the very heart of the city, and must be very valuable
in the coming time.

" When we landed we received a cordial salutation
from our esteemed brother, and a hearty Methodist
welcome from his family, and felt at once all the
comforts of a home. I preached on Sabbath morning
to a congregation of nearly three hundred, and we
took up a collection !or the Missionary Society.
Addressed the large and interesting Sabbath-school
in the afternoon, whom I found well up in Bible
history ; and my friend Bro. Armstrong preached a
most effective and practical sermon in the evening.
As all the facts connected with our important cause
here were so well put in the report of the deputation
of last year, as well as the facts communicated by
Bro. Young himself during his recent visit, I need not
enlarge ; but bear my testimony to the wisdom of the
choice that was made in selecting him for his present
position. I was highly delighted to find that he was
regarded by all as a first-class representative of our
body on any and every occasion, both in the pulpit
and on the platform; and it gave me great pleasure
to see his unwearied devotion to the interests of every
missionary in the work in the whole country ; in
many cases anticipating their wants and studying in
every way to promote their welfare. The firm and
manly stand he took during the dark and perilous
days through which the infant colony passed, when
traitors were in the ascendant, and his magnanimous
and Christian heroism in standing b}'^ the side of poor
Scott, tying at his request the bandage tighter over
his eyes and administering to him what consolation
he could, and breathing the name of Jesus in his ear
a minute or two before he was shot, have given him
place in the affections and memories of the people

DR. LACHLAN TAYLORS TOUR.

258

le, as it
fort, in
aluable

iitation

thodist

all the

lorning

^nd we

lociety.

-school

Bible

ched a

^ening.

b cause

itation

ted by

ed not

of the

resent

e was

)f our

pulpit

jasure

every

ng in

and

rilous

when

mous

poor

over

ition

ear

him

iople

that will not be forgotten during the present genera-
tion.

" Bro. Young drove me to two of his out-stations,
Stoney Mountain and Headingly, where we found
twenty-eight hearers at the former, whom I ad-
dressed, and twelve at the latter, to whom Bro.
Armstrong preached, and I closed with an exhorta-
tion. At some of these places it is emphatically the
day of small things, but our Church from the be-
ginning, true to her character, must be the pioneer
and carry the message of life to those that will be
scattered abroad over that land of magnificent dis-
tances

" Embracing the first opportunity, we sailed the
following Thursday in the boat of a private trader
(as it was uncertain when the Company's boats would
be ready) for Norway House, which we reached in
thirteen days and a half, time enough to cross the
Atlantic, although it is only about 8(30 miles. This
was the most uncomfortable voyage I ever performed,
for the following reasons : — First, an open boat with-
out any chance of walking or promenading, or exer-
cise, and obliged to sit all day in a space about six feet
by eight, and as we were v^oyaging in the very worst
time of the flies, when we went ashore either for cook-
ing meals or camping for the night, millions of
mosquitoes were ready to pounce upon us, and whose
voracious powers no language could describe. Our
digestive organs got sadly out of order, and we could
sympathize with our esteemed brethren, the mission-
aries and their families, who have had to take a
similar voyage to reacli that field of self-denying toil
and labor. On the foiu'teenth day from Winnipeg,
sailing on slowly on a beautiful little lak( called
Mission Lake, the master of the boat exclaimed : 'We
are only about half-a-mile from Mr. Young's house,'
and never was intelligence receive^ with more joy by

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254

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

an Atlantic voyager after a stormy voyage, than we
received the welcome announcement, and soon that
joy was heightened by our kind reception at the par-
sonage, although we arrived at an unseasonable hour.
Mr. Young was soon up, and after a comfortable
supper, with Christian family comforts, we conversed
till full dawn, and then went to rest. On Sabbath
morning we heard the bell ring at half -past six for the
morning prayer-meeting ; it rang again for Sunday-
school at nine. As the mission premises are located
on an elevated point of land, almost surrounded by
water, it was a grand sight, that glorious Sa ^bath
morning, to stand and see boats approaching in every
direction, some rowing, some paddling, some sailing,
from the tiny little bark canoe, to the " Lady of the
Lake," rowed by eight stalwart Orkney men and High-
landers, having on board the officers of the Hudson
Bay Company, from the fort ; and all if not flying as
a cloud and as doves to their windows, yet coming on
the wings of the wind as ships to their haven, and
voyagers to the port of peace — the sanctuary of God.
I preached at eleven o'clock to nearly four hundred,
including officers and employees of the Hudson Bay
Company, Orkney men and a few enthusiastic High-
landers, and some half-breeds. But the large majority
were Indians, members and adherents of our Church,
and seldom have I witnessed, either at home or abroad,
such devout attention to the word preached and such
a spirit of devotion in the congregation — that inde-
scribable something that pervades the service, felt alike
by both preacher and hearer, when praying hearts are
lifted up in communion with God. Upwards of one
hundred and twenty partook of the Lord's Supper in
the afternoon, and a few had come over twenty miles
to be present. The preceding Sabbath, when we were
expected, and before the large brigade of boats had left,
upwards of two hundred and twenty had communi-

DR. LACHLAN TAYLORS TOUR.

255

han we
)n that
he par-
te hour,
'ortable
iversed
labbath
for the
unday-
located
ded by
aibath
I every
sailing,
of the
High-
ludson
^ing as
jing on
n, and
God.
ndred,
Bay
High-
jority
lurch,
)road,
such
inde-
alike
aS are
one
er in
miles
were
left,
nuni-

cated, and although we were deeply sorry that we
failed to reach them, yet we did our best to get there,
and could do no more. In the evening we crossed to
the fort, and had service in the neat room fitted up as
a church by the Company. My esteemed fellow-
traveller, Mr. Armstrong, preached, and we felt it
was good to be there. We spent a couple of hours in
the Mission School, and found a fine school with sixty-
five scholars in attendance. We heard them read the
Scriptures, both in English and in Cree, in the syllabic
characters, and also heard them examined in No. 1
Catechism, and was delighted at the accuracy of their
answers in English to some of the most difficult
questions, especially as they speak and think in
Cree, although they may know a little English.
Brother Young gave out some hymns in Cree,
which they sang charmingly, and their writing and
the cleanness of their copy books would compare
favorably with those of any school in this favored
Province. When I looked at the prosperity of the
mission and the school, and cast a retrospective glance
up to the days of the devoted James Evans, I could
not but reflect on what immense benefits nave been
bestowed on that people and their children by the
Wesleyan Missionary Society, and at the same time
exclaiming, as I did after the Sunday morning ser-
vice : Much as the parent Society, as well as our own,
have expended on this mission, it is repaid a thousand
times in the sound conversion, consistent lives, and
happy deaths of these simple-minded followers of the
Lamb. It is doubtless the finest Indian mission in
the Dominion, if not in America.

" 24th (Tuesday), enjoyed a strong breeze and a
favorable wind from the south. Accompanied by my
brethren, Messrs. You.ng and Armstrong, we embarked
with a fine brigade of three boats of the Hudson Bay
Company, all manned by our people, for Oxford

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

House, some two hundred miles distant. On this
voyage we saw a most remarkable proof of their gifts
and piety. Supper done, at the call of their pastor,
the crews of the three boats came together, a hymn
was sung, given out in English and Cree ; and the
commodore of the fleet, Bro. Cochrane, led in prayer,
and r\e of he ministers followed us in a short one in
English: and J3ro. Young informed us that if we
sailed >r tv?> days he could call on a fresh one each
time to lead 'v devotions, out of a company of
twenty-six men. Where would you find such boat
crews on the waters of the globe, such a majority that
could lead fluently and appropriately in prayer ? more
in proportion than in any of our city churches. The
company at devotion would have been a grand scene
for an artist. The grave and devout appearance ol
the worshippers, prostrate with their faces to the
ground ; the ministers in the same position ; the two
tents representing pilgrim life ; the camp fires burn-
ing ; and the charming background of poplars, firs,
spruce, and larch, would make a picture fit to fill a
niche in any gallery in the world. And, what the
artist could never touch with his pencil or his brush,
the deep emotion and peace of souls in communion
with God, and the felt consciousness of the Divine
presence. After a most wonderful voyage, in which I
saw specimens and examples of navigation that I
never saw equalled, we arrived at Oxford House,
beautifully situated on Oxford Lake, one of the
finest in America, and received a cordial welcome
from the gentlemanly officer in charge, C. Sinclair,
Esq.

" On Sabbath morning I gave them ' Walks about
Jerusalem,' applying it spiritually, and Mr. Sinclair,
our evangelist there, interpreted ; but unfortunately,
one of my finest points on the prayer-meeting in the
garden of Gethsemane, under the magnificent olive,

DR. LACHLAN TAYLORS TOUR.

257

Louse,
the
Icome
^clair,

ibout

|clair,

itely,

the

)live.

was shorn or its glory in one particular, by Sr-j.
Young hearing him translate the olive as a grea-i;^-
tree or stick, and for the moment to me ignorance
was bliss, and I pyssed on — or had I known it I
certainly would have said : Can you not do better
than that? If not, pass it by. Bro. Young gave
them an instructive address in the afternoon, after
which we had the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper,
and baptized several children. Though all were glad
to see the visitors, and there w. . a eneral rally for
miles around, making a congre, ''.tic . of about sixty,
yet we found the cause in a \<,v . nd depressed state,
and the general aspect and Cvjn^^rion of the mission
most unsatisfactory. An evangelist who cannot
administer the ordinances mi !; t<,lways be placed at
a disadva-ntage, especially where there are a number
of church members, and this was not an exception.
Again, the members and adherents were divided
between the old locality, or head of the mission, at
Jackson's Bay, and the fort, eighteen ^ 3 distant —
the large majority being at the fort — l d anxiously
desiring the removal of the church and mission
thither; but three or four families pleading for
things to remain as they were, regarding it as a
better place for their fishing, with small patches
of arable land where they raised a few potatoes,
arrangements were made for the removal of excellent
materials which the assistant had prepared and
erected for a new church, ready for the plates, from
the bay to the fort ; and the erection there of the
new premises ; and for the school -house at the bay to
be fitted up for a little church, which has been done,
and will more than accommodate the f'^w that are
remaining. It is to be hoped that ere long the few
still at the bay will come to the fort, and not only
save the missionary fatigue and labor, but enable him
to concentrate his efforts with greater success where
17

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258

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

they are most needed. An old local preacher, how-
ever, named Daniel Belton, visited us, and in an elo-
quent oration (as understood by Bro. Young and Mr.
Sinclair), set forth their claims, and his whole manner
and bearing commanded our unqualified admiration.
They complained that they had had no school for
eight years, but now they will have a faithful and
effective man from Norway House, and who will, we
believe, make a most successful helper. From the
spirit and courage which our Brother German mani-
fests and in which he enters on his work, we believe
Oxford House Mission has entered on a new era of
spiritual prosperity.

"As we could not wait for a couple of weeks till
the first brigade, which was expected, returned from
York Factory, we were obliged to hire two small
bark canoes, manned by two men each, with one of
ourselves in the centre of the tiny craft with his
paddle, for the return journey to Norway House, and
although one sitting in his easy chair in a parlor may
admire Longfellow's description : —

" And the forest life is in it,
All its mystery and its magic I
All the lightness of the Birch tree,
All the toughness of the Cedar,
All the Larch's supple sinews,
And it floated down the river,
Like a yellow leaf in Autumn ;
Like a yellow water-lily. "

Yet it is much more practical, and another thing,
when crossing a lake twelve or fifteen miles long,
in a pretty stiff' breeze, and only nine or ten inches
above the water. The Superintendent of Norway
House seemed in his element, and the Indians said
the visitor could paddle pretty well.

"After four days' hard paddling we arrived at
Norway House, and found all well. Although com-

DR. LACHLAN TAYLORS TOUR.

thing,
long,
iches

|rway
said

Id at
Icom-

plaining next day, I had a comfortable Sabbath and
preached at the fort in the evening. Next day we
bade our friends adieu, and Bro. Semmens and myself
sailed with the same trader with whom we went out,
arrived safely in Winnipeg, where I found my guide,
companion, and famous fellow-traveller, for the prairie
and the great North-West, Bro John McDougall, had
been waiting patiently with his men for three weeks
for my arrival.

" Our dashing, unbridled native steeds being col-
lected from their great unfenced pasture field — our
little stores purchased and packed as necessary to be
secured before you start on your journey through
' The Great Lone Land ' as if you were part of an
Eastern caravan— our carriages, an ordinary Ontario
waggon and two buckboards ; a small party of three
men, subsequently increased to six, started from what
is now the City of Winnipeg, on a tour of two thousand
miles, and ten weeks' continuous travel, to visit all
the important points where our missions have been
or may yet be established, and explore generally the
largest and grandest division, although the least
known, of our glorious Canadian Confederation.

" From Rat Creek, and Messrs. Grant's and McKen-
zie's farms, the present ultima Thule of civilization on
the great highway to the Saskatchewan, we saw only
one house, and that uninhabited, till we reached Fort
Ellice, on the bank of the Assiniboine — two hundred
and thirty miles from Fort Garry — where we leceived
a Highland welcome from Mr. McDonald, the gentle-
manly officer in charge. Having rested anci recruited,
we set out for the next grand stage, and saw not a
house till we came within eighteen miles of Fort
Carl .on, which is three hundred and seven miles from
For Ellice, almost as far as from Toronto to M it-
without seeing a human abode, civilized or sav-
and passing nearly the whole of the distance

■1 f

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

through a most picturesque and charming country.
Here two or three of our shoeless horses began to get
footsore and we had them shod, also sundry repairs
to some of our gear and trappings. We travelled one
hundred and sixty-seven miles farther, when my
active companion, leaving the man and myself to cook
and prepare our dinner, communicating by signs,
mounted one of the best saddle horses, and from what
is termed the guard of Fort Pitt, galloped off to the
fort, and in the course of two or three hours returned,
accompanied by the Chairman, Brother George Mc-
Dougall, and a servant. Brother Peter Campbell, his
boy and another boy that came with them, which
threw a new element of life into our party ; and after
mutual congratulations we went on our way rejoicing.
Nearly one hundred miles farther and not very far
from the royal little Victoria, we turned our faces
directly north, leaving the boys in charge of the tent
and baggage, and rode forty miles on horseback to
White Fish Lake Mission, which, in one day on a
native horse, without having had practice for some
years, made sleep sweet on the hard floor with my
coat for a pillow. Here we were much disappointed
to find the neat mission house locked, and the mis-
sionary and his family, and the teacher and his family,
with the large majority of our people, women and
children, away hundreds of miles on the plains
hunting the buffalo. But we found the locum
tenens of the place, Benjamin Sinclair, who was
overjoyed to see us, and he hardly knew what to
say, or how to express himself, when I presented
him with the $120 from the Committee towards
making up his loss when the canoe upset with
himself and Peter Jacobs. His conversion, as re-
lated by himself, is intensely interesting. While
my friends were getting the horses ready, I went
to the church and rang the Toronto bell, whicli

DR. LacHlaK Taylor's tour.

t6\

was presented by our esteemed colleague, Mr. Mac-
donald, and in ten minutes we had seventy of a con-
gregation; Brother John McDougall interpreted with
great earnestness, and we had a time of refreshing
from the presence of the Lord. This mission, located
at 54° north latitude, more than eleven degrees north
of Toronto, was commenced in 1856, b}^ the excellent
brother who has been the pastor from the commence-
ment till last June, when he was appointed to Wood-
ville. During his seventeen years, God has given him
great success; the membership being one hundred
and eighteen, and the congregation about two hun-
dred, with a school of sixty children. The premises
are a plain log church, thirty by twenty, a mission
house with five rooms, and a kitchen, neat and com-
fortable, and a stable that answers the purpose, and
all erected with the missionary's own hands, with
what help the Indians could give him, and without
expense to the Society. The mission lot, of five or
six acres, may be cultivated, for the soil is as rich as
Solomon's gardens. There is a lake at the door
abounding with the finest fish in America. Many
happy deaths might be named connected with the
history of this mission if our space would permit.

" The next mission in order is Victoria, pictur-
esquely situated on the Saskatchewan, 54° north lati-
tude, and, by odometer, eight hundred and sixteen
miles from Fort Garry. We received a warm wel-
come from Mrs. David and Miss McDougall, and then
passed on to our comfortable home with Brother
Campbell's family in the parsonage. This mission
was commenced by Bro. G iorge McDougall, in 1862,
beginning with a large body of Crees, profes.sed ad-
herents of our Church, and therefore clasfsef were
organized in a short time. A church and mission
house was built in two years, which cost $2,000,
which was all defrayed by local contribution and

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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personal effort. There are about ten acres enclosed,
which is considered the mission lot, although in
reality there are no bounds to the north till you reach
the A rctic circle. The mission-house has eight rooms,
four above and four below ; a fine garden, a snug
little church, which must soon give place to a larger
one, as it will hold only about one hundred and fifty ;
and a bell to summon the worshippers at the hour of
prayer.

" In the garden we saw the mournful monuments
of the tidings we heard in this land, in the four
graves — three of Bro. McDougall's daughters (two his
own, and the daughter of Ogemawahsis, adopted),
and Bro. John McDougall's first wife ; and the tragic
details of the former ; the death of the three by small-
pox, and the father and son putting the lovely
daughter and sister in the cofiin — digging the grave
themselves and covering it — none daring to come near
to aid or administer consolation. Poor Mrs. Mc-
Dougall kept up till the last one was gone, and then
she swooned, and did not recover consciousness for
some forty-eight hours.

" Our services on Sabbath were well attended,
although the large majority of the Indians were
away hunting the buffalo. The half-breeds of the
fine little settlement and the employees of the Com-
pany made (juite a congregation. English sermon in
the morning, a talk of an hour and a half on the
Holy Land, translated into Cree, in the afternoon,
and a fine Cree service by Bro. John McDougall, in
the evening, filled up this delightful Sabbath. iJem-
bership seventy, thirty of whom were received on
trial in the revival last spring, under the labors of
Bro. C^ampbell ; ten removals and four deaths during
the year ; and when the Indians are at home the
congregation is about one hundred and twenty; sixty
children in the school during the week, and sixty -five

i !i

were
the

0111-

11 ill
the

OOll,

1, in
em-

Oll

H of
rin<r

the
ixty
five

t)R. LACHLAN TAYLOR'S TOUR.

^63

on the Sabbath ; and the school, taught by a gentle-
manly, well-educated half-breed of the name of Mc-
Kenzie, a local preacher in our Church and a good
man. Of the many remarkable and happy deaths
that have occurred in the history of the mission, a
few might be cited did space permit.

"The next mission in order was Fort Edmonton,
for which we set out on Monday (for Mr. McDougall
meant business), after bidding adieu to our kind
hostess, Mrs. Campbell, in whose comfortable house
we were as much at home as in many of the mansions
of the older Canada, and reached the second day
before tea time, seventy-one miles distant. The
second day in the afternoon, while passing through a
magnificent section of country, looking like an Eng-
lish park, with beautiful groves of aspen and fir in
the distance, and some twelve or fourteen miles from
Edmonton, we met the Chief Factor, Mr. Hardisty,
Mr. McDougall's son-in-law, and his second son-in-
law, the son of the Hon. John Young, of Montreal,
Mr. Leslie Wood, and Mrs. Hardisty, Mrs. Young and
Mrs. John McDougall, who had a most luxurious
bpread on the beautiful sward, Canadian pic-nic
fashion, to which we were welcomed and invited in
the style which characterizes the princely benevolence
of the officers of the Hudson Bay Company.

" After a quiet evening and rest of one night only,
we set out next morning for Wood vi lie, fifty-six
miles south south-west from Edmonton, travelling by
buckboard and on the saddle, and arriving the second
day in time for a social service at the mission house
in the evening. Here we were on the ground of, in
some respects, the finest band of Indians in all the
territory that stretclies from Fort Garry to the Rocky
Mountains, " The Stonies," and although located in
one of the finest situations in all that country, yet the
Bow River valley, where Ih'o. John McDougall has

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264

MANITOBA MEMOniES.

gone, is to be their future home. The mission was
named after my esteemed colleague, Dr. Wood, and
he would be proud of it if he saw it. Pigeon Lake,
on whose bank the premises stand, is one of the very
finest lakes in America ; from fifteen to twenty miles
long, and from six to eight miles wide ; and if located
in Europe, would find its place in the fellowship of
Como, Maggiore, Lucerne, Windermere, or Loch Lo-
mond. It is swarming with white fish of Al quality,
that can be caught at any season of the year, and as
many as five hundred have been caught in a day,
averaging four pounds each. This mission was com-
menced by Bro. John McDougall, in 1864, who built
the little mission house and church with his own
hands, with such help as the Stonies could give him.
The Mountain Stonies, as a tribe, are our members,
or adherents, and the old ones have remained faithful
since the days of the devoted RundJe, thirty years or
more ; but some have fallen asleep.

" Edmonton is next in order. The devoted Rundle
made Edmonton his headquarters, and from which
he went forth on his evangelistic tour to the sur-
rounding tribes. When he left there was a vacancy
of seven years, when Brother Woolsey was appointed,
who remained nine years, labored faithfully and was
much beloved and respected ; but no premises were
erected and no class formed, and the services were
held in the fort. Then they w^ere only occasion-
ally visited after Brother Woolsey left, for six or
seven years, till Brother George McDougall went and
properly established the mission, and of his persever-
ance and success W(^ cannot speak in too strong terms,
and must ever command our higliest admiration and
praise. Now there are twenty members ; a congrega-
tion of about sixty, and constantly increasing; two
services on Sabbath and one during tlie week, and as
it is a grand centre it is of the utmost importaijC^

, I

ilfl

i)R. LACHLAN TAYLORS TOUU.

265

)ver-

?rins,

and

two

(1 as

laiiCe

that it bo properly sustained. The new church, which
we dedicated, is a neat building, well finished ; the
work having been done by the Rev. Benjamin Jones
in good style. The dimensions are thirty-two feet
long and twenty -four feet wide, and all the pews were
let before it was dedicated. TLo mission-house has
five rooms, with a large kitchen ; and the premises
cost at least $8,000. only SoOO of which was granted
by the Society. The lot joins the fine propert}^ oi' the
Company (who own three thousand acres in a block)
and is fifty I'ods frontage on the Saskatchewan, and
runs back or north to som<; imaginary line between
that and the North Pole. The whole of that region
covers one of the finest and largest coal beds in the
w^orld. The services on Sabbath were : sermon and
dedication in the morning; sermon in Cree in the
afternoon, by Brother J. McDougall ; and Brother
Campbell preached an excellent sermon in the even-
ing. Preparations being all made, stores purchased,
Brothers George and John McDougall, Brother Snyder,
a young man who is entering our work, the visitor,
William the servant, and a Cree Indian that j nned
us subsequently, crossed the Saskatchewan — in all, six
men and eleven horses, for a journey of about eight
hundred miles and over four weeks' constant travel,
to survey that grandest section of the field for future
openings, the new mission Held in the magnificent
Bow River valley, Morleyville, and especially to see
the various triV)eH of Indians on the plains, in their
numbers and strength, and judge of the mission work
yet to be done by our beloved Church, which has,
from the beginning of her history, taken the lead in
benefiting thos( original masters of the soil who are
fast melting away. \\v met four camps of the (^rees

witli each of whon» we had stu*vice,an(l then vnuw to a
camp of I'orty-thrcn or lort}' lour tents : held a service
in the evening an<l another in the morning, with a tine

^Wk

s V]'

.1,

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MANITOBA MEMOr.IES.

audience, and afterwards had council with them for
over three hours. Three days afterwards, as we were
journeying over a magnificent treeless prairie, a scout
from the savage and ferocious Blackfeet, who were
camped in their strength a short distance from us,
galloped into their camp and sounded the alarm that
* American traders ' were approaching. As they
were in a valley hidden from us, we knew nothing till
we saw some sixty men, armed to the teeth, and
mounted on swift horses, approaching on the full
gallop, bent on blood, and with a solemn resolve to
kill us, before they would allow us to enter the camp,
and exhibit, as they supposed, our wares for sale. But
when they ascertained that, instead of being a party
of those outlaws who have injured them in every
possible form, we belonged to their country and to
their Great Mother across the big waters, and were
missionaries and men of peace, we were marched into
the chief's tent, where, much to our physical discom-
fort, we spent that evening, the whole of the next day,
being the Sabbath and Sabbath night, and departed
next morning in peace, at'ter a general shaking of
hands, and in their way friendly good-bye. We held
a religious service in the afternoon, and when we
knelt on the ground to pray, they gazed at us with
intense amazement and all the expression of wonder
at our mode of worshipping the Great Spirit. When
we reflected on our signal deliverance, we raised our
hearts in devout thanksgiving and praise unto God,
and realized perhaps as we never did before, ' For
the angel of the Lord encampeth round about them
that fear Him and delivereth them.'

" Tuesday, after leaving the Blackfeet, we descended
into the spl ndid Bow River valley, and the next
day -^amped within five miles of the location of the
future M.^rleyville, doubtless the most romantic and
f^randest site for mission premises in all our work, i^

DR. LACHLAK TAYLORS TOUR.

267

till

en we
with

onder

When
1 our
(Jod,
For

them

.'nded

r the

and

rk \f

■

not in all America. Fronting on the Bow River is
the main branch of the South Saskatchewan, a clear
rapid stream swarming with fish, flanked and sur-
rounded by the chain of foot hills, which constitute
the Propylon, or majestic gateway to the Rocky
Mountains, thirty or forty of whose giant peaks can
be seen from the mission-house door, having on their
northern shoulders the snows that never melt ; and in
a clear morning, as the rising sun successively gilds
the peaks according to their altitude or position, the
scene is one of indescribable beauty, sublimity and
grandeur. Between the foot hills and the mountains
are wide vales or wadys from fifteen to twenty miles
wide, where horses and cattle graze and fatten the
winter through ; and to this desirable spot, having a
reserve twenty miles on each side of the Bow River,
the Stonies have promised to come in a body, and it
is hoped that the Blackfeet who, to the present, have
been restless roamers, will be induced to come there
also, for there is room enough for all. The committee
have made provisi'^n for two interpreters, and no
church was ever blessed with a better agent, or a v lan
possessing higher (|ualifications f »• that work, than
Brother John McDougall.

" Ten days after, we reach
head of steamboat navigati(
hoping from information pre\
Bismarck, where the North<'
river, was not a very long j stance from us, l>ut,
alas for our ignorance of the geography of the great
North-West I that land of magnificent distances, for
we found that it was more than one thousand miles
by the river and between seven and eight hundred by
land, and either was dangerouF unless there was a
large party, for tlie meanest and .iiost treacherous of
all the Indian tribes occupy those regions."

Fort Benton, the

on the Missouri,

usly received that

Pacific crosses tlie

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I'll

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CHAPTER XVII.

OU/^ EARLY EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENTS IN

MANITOBA.

From the addresses of Messrs. Macdonald and
Punshon, delivered at the annual meetinor of the
Missionary Board at Brockville, as given in the
preceding chapter, it will be seen that the establish-
ment of an educational institute in Winnipeg at an
early day had received their careful consideration,
an 1 was regarded with special lavor. Mr. Macdonald
had secured a promise from Hon. Donald A. Smith,
then Governor of the Hudson Bay Company, of a
suitable lot on which to place college buildings, and
subscriptions amounting to a large sum were called
for and received at the Brockville meeting. As I
was I'eminded by Mr. Macdonald of this promise, I
applied to Mr. Smith, requesting him to kindly locate
the lot thus promised, and was assured that this
should be done as soon as we were prepared to
commence the building or buildings in question and
proceed with the contemplated college. But inasmuch
as we were not in the possession of funds sufficient
to warrant our entering upon what would ne'^'3ssarily
involve a heavy outlay, and also as the number and
circumstances of our adherents in Manitoba were not

■J

OUR EARLY EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENTS.

269

TS IN

lid and

of the

in the

5tablish-

g at an

leration,

cdonald

. Smith,

ly, of a

igs, and

called

As I

)niise, I

y^ locate

at this

ired to

ion and

asmuch

ifficient

ssarily

)er and

ere not

such as to promise the patronage requisite for the
sustentation of such an effort, we felt that for us to
enter thereupon, until our Methodist community
should be considerably increased, would be decidedly
injudicious. The fulfilment of the promise was not
realized, for the reason indicated. I make this record
chiefly to relieve the minds of any who may have
expressed surprise at my having allowed the promise
of Mr. Smith to lapse, thereby missing a gift that
would have been of great value to the Church at a
later period. I was as unable to comply with the
condition on which the gift was offered as I was to
proceed to the erection of college buildings — or to do
any other impossible thiUj^ In the spring of 1873,
however, there came into existence what seemed a
sufficient reason for the commencement of a move-
ment, though on a very small scale, for the twofold
purpose of safeguarding our youth from error and
adverse influence, and also to secure for them better
educational advantages than those hitherto enjoyed
The Winnipeg Free Press of the 10th of May con-
tained the following criticism of the public school
facilities of the town: "The common school system,
as our legislators have left it, has not yet done much
for the country, and the present state of things (edu-
cationally) is far from satisfactory.

" We have the public school of the district, and the
Roman Catholic school, rec<^nized by law as a separ-
ate common school. The first of thf*?se has never
received the united support of ProteHtants which it
needed to put it on a proper V)asis.

J' so '• .' I

"■%'■ ■ 'I

i,.

>^i!

S f/

■' [■

If'

• I

270

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

" We hear of a good deal of dissatisfaction in rela-
tion to it, and that the children are not ailvancing, etc.

" The Roman Catholic school has profloed from the
misfortune of the school of the majority, etc."

Under the condition of things, of which a glimpse
is afforded in these quotations, a considerable number
of the Protestant children of the village were being
sent to the institution opened by the " Sisters of
Charity " in Notre Dame Street East, and among
them several of the Sabbath-school scholars of Grace
Church. The parents of some of these, finding that
they were learning and adopting some un-Protestant
notions and customs, sucli as crossing themselves
before meals, etc., complained to their pastor, asking
if something could not be done to protect them from
such teaching, whereupon I offered to meet the case
at once by building, without cost to them, a small
school house on the church lot, and employing a
competent lady teacher, if they would promise to
sustain the school by sending their children and by
paying a reasonable fee. This was readily and cheer-
fully agreed to — the building was erected, and in a
few days Mrs. D. L. Clink, who had been accustomed
to teacli in Ontario, was placed in charge. The school
soon became so popular, and the attendance so large,
tliat the building was found quite too small to accom-
modate all desiring admission.

In June, 1873, I attended Conference in London,
after an absence therefrom of six years, when the
needs of my distant parish were duly considered, and
it was recommended that my stay in the country

OUR EARLY EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENTS.

271

in rela-
ing, etc.
•om the

glimpse
number
3 being
iters of
among
'. Grace
Qg that
)testant
niselves
asking
m from
he case
a small
ying a
nise to
and by
cheer-
id in a
stomed
school
large,
accom-

ondon,
3n the
1, and
iiuitry

should be so prolonged as to enable me to visit the
principal towns and cities, and solicit funds for the
two-fold object of aiding in the building of small
chapels in some of the outposts ; and also in the
erection of a suitable building in Winnipeg as our
Wesleyan Institute, My work began forthwith, the
ministers at the Conference and many kind friends
in London subscribing very liberally to the fund.
During the next two months I visited Brantford,
Hamilton, Toronto, Oakville, Port Hope, Peterboro',
Belleville, Picton, Kingston, Ottawa, Montreal and
Quebec, with encouraging results — the subscriptions
amounting to about $3,000, which in addition to
what Dr. Punshon and Mr Macdonald had secured
in subscriptions at Brockville, a good deal of
which I collected, totalled nearly $6,000. My sum-
mer's work was not by any means a light one.
Early in September I returned to Winnipeg, bringing
with me a somewhat expensive outfit for the Institute,
in maps, charts, globes, and apparatus, as well as
books for librar}^ reference, etc. On the 27th of
September, our Winnipeg newspaper reported that
" The frame of the Wesleyan Institute was now up "
and that the building was of two stories and would
be very commodious, and later on the report given
was that " the opening of the Wesleyan Institute
took place on the 3rd of November, and that the
building had been erected on the corner of Main and
Water Streets, on the same lot as that occupied by the
parsonage and Grace Church." The cost of the build-
ings and ecjuipment w^s nearly $3,000. A portion of

*' ■;!

ill

l'';i'

I''*

i'J

«*

.; (

111 '

' I

:,1

i-';iii

I , '

1^:

272

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

the balance of the collections made as referred to, was
used in aiding in the erection of the first Zion
Church in the North Ward, and also in aiding the
people in building small places of worship at Rock-
wood, Poplar Point, High Bluff, Palestine, and near
the third crossing of the White Mud River. By the
balance remaining, the excess of expenditures over
receipts in the running of the Institute, which un-
avoidably amounted to a considerable annual deficit,
was in most part paid, aid being afforded us from the
Educational Fund of the Church in small grants for a
short time, until in 1877, when, the fund being ex-
hausted and in association with another reason I will
mention, it was deemed advisable to suspend opera-
tions for a season. That suspension was all the less
regretable in view of the greatly improved condi-
tion of our public schools, and the fact that those who
had hitherto supported the Institute found that the
" school tax," which they had to pay in common with
those who were profiting therefrom, together with the
fees of the Institute, amounted to more than they
were able to pay. In connection with the opening on
the 3rd of November the following circular was
issued :

"MANITOBA WESLEYAN INSTITUTE.
" 1873-4.

" On the occasion of the opening of the new build-
ing and the beginning of advanced classes, the Board
of Management desires to call attention to some of the
advantages of this School of Hijrher Education.

^' Its central position, on Main Street, near Grace

OUR EARLY EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENTS.

273

to, was
t Zion
ng the

Rock-
d near
By the
2s over
ich un-
deficit,
:oin the
.ts for a
ing ex-
Q I will
. opera-
the less
. condi-
ose who
;liat the
on with

ith the
m they

ning on

ar was

7 build-
3 Board
e of the

Grace

Church and the new Post Office, makes it of easy access
from all parts of the town and vicinity,

" The building is commodious, school-rooms large
and well lighted, ceilings high, and in heating and
ventilation as well as in the arrangements of desks,
seats, blackboards, etc., special care has been taken to
have everything in accordance with the most approved
designs. Ample accommodation is thus afforded for
more than one hundred pupils.

" The apparatus is, probably, the best of the kind
in the Province, having been specially selected from
the Educational Depository of Ontario, and consists
of maps, charts, globes, philosophical apparatus and
general school-room outfit.

" The Institute will be in charge of Rev. A. Bower-
man, B.A., assisted by a staff of competent and
experienced teachers."

The number of pupils whose names were entered
in the register for the first month after the opening
was forty-seven. Arrangements were also made for
evening classes in a commercial course and in modern
languages.

At the close of the session of 1875-6, the Principal
presented the following report : —

" To the Board of Management of the Wesleyan
Institute :

" The attendance has been considerably in advance
of any previous year, and with a more promising class
of pupils. This is, no doubt, owing in a great mea-
sure to the increase in the staff of teachers as well as
to an increase of population. The following is a
classification of the attendance :

"The Higher Department, Ancient and Modern Lp,n-
guages. Higher Mathematics, etc. — 18.
18

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Sciences

Corporation

33 WIST MAIN ST'^IIT

WIUTH.N.Y. I4SM

(71«)I79-4S03

274

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

55 i

" Intermediate Department, the English branches of
the Ontario High School Course. — IG.

" Primary Department, consisting of all below the
standard of entrance to a High School in Ontario. — 40.
Total 71.

" The evening classes of Mr. Morden in German and
Shorthand have been fairly attended. The character
of the work done is very evident from the marked
progress of his pupils. The class in Vocal Music has
been of great value to the Institute during the past
year.

" The Primary Department has been well attended
and has already furnished a number of pupils for the
higher departments,

" In regularity and punctuality on the part of the
pupils and interest on the part of the parents, there
has been a marked improvement. Two young men
are just completing their preparation for the Univer-
sity of Victoria College. This one item, small as it
seems, is the best possible evidence of the value and
necessity of the Institute to Methodism. No student
from the other denominational schools (and we will
have nothing else here for several years) will go to
Victoria. The apparatus, though scanty, is sufficient
for the present need ; one globe, a full set of maps, a
magic lantern with several hundred views, a case of
chemicals, a lot of charts of various kinds, and a
variety of books very good for prizes, with a number
of educational works, complete the Hat. A few text-
books also remain on hand.

•* Respectfully submitted,

(Signed) " A. Bowerman.

" Winnipeg, May 11th, 1876."

I have pleasure in acknowledging my indebtedness
for what follows, in relation to both the Wesleyan

OUR EARLY EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENTS.

275

inches of

3I0W the
rio. — 40.

man and
jharacter

marked
lusic has

the past

attended
Is for the

rt of the
its, there
ung men
i Univer-
nall as it
alue and
D student
1 we will
^ill go to
sufficient

maps, a
a case of
s, and a

number
ew text-

SRMAN.

btedness
Vesleyan

Institute and to Wesley College, to the Rev. T. E.
Morden, B.A. The chapter as a whole will indicate, I
judge, that the Institute was the College in embryo.

" Principal Bowerman continued his work, with an
assistant in the Preparatory department, until May,
1876, when he returned to Ontario. The work of
that year was completed by Rev. T. E. Morden, B.A.,
Miss Eraser, of High Bluff, Man., conducting the
Primary department for part of the time, and Miss
Spencer (afterwards Mrs. Large, of Japan) continuing
it until its close about a year later. The growth of
the city and the improvement of the Public School
system had by this time removed the necessity for
the maintenance by the Methodist Church of a separ-
ate elementary or a preparatory school ; and the
city and country did not seem prepared as yet to
sustain a college. The patronage would have been
too limited, and funds could not have been secured
from Manitoba or Ontario for its sustenance.

" THE ESTABLISHMENT OF WESLEY COLLEGE.

" For some yeai-s previous to the founding of the
Manitoba Wesleyan Institute, the Church of England
had had St. John's College ; the Roman Catholic
Church, St. Boniface College; and the Presbyterian
Church, Manitoba College, engaged in doing the
educational work of those denominations. I'hese
institutions did not then conduct many students
l^eyond university matriculation ; and there was no
degree-conferring body in the Province. In 1877 the
Manitoba Legislature established tlu' University of
Manitoba, with the three colleges named in affiliation;
at the same time a charter was granted to ' Wesley
College,' with provision made for its affiliation as
soon as it should be established as a teaching institu-
tion with a certain number of professors, and becouK*

1^3*

! ■ ■ f
1' '' ; 1

276

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

!■!

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possessed of a suitable building. No further progress
was made towards meeting the educational require-
ments of Methodism in Manitoba and the North- West
until 1886, when an amended charter was granted by
the Legislature to Wesley College. The question of
providing training for candidates for the ministry
was, however, often discussed in conferences and
district meetings, and resolutions were passed, accom-
panied in some instances with offers of subscriptions
of considerable sums.

" The actual work of teaching was begun in the fall
of 1888, the appointment of the Principal, Rev. J. W.
Sparling, D.D., dating from August of that year, and
the commencement of lectures by the first professors,
R. R. Cochrane, M.A., and G. J. Laird, M.A., Ph.D., a
few months later. Steps were soon afterwards taken
to secure the affiliation of the College with the
University of Manitoba, which result was effected
before the close of the academic year. The Depart-
ment of Theology was instituted at the beginning of
the second year, when the Principal began to devote
his full time to his College duties, his position as
President of the Montreal ^lethodist Conference and
pastor of a large church in the City of Kingston, Ont,
having retained him in Eastern Canada during the
i^reater part of the first year.

" The teaching of the first year was done in the class
rooms of Grace Church. For the second and third
years a building on Albert Street was rented. The
constantly increasing attendance then made it abso-
lutely necessary to remove to a third place, and
fortunately the Board succeeded in securing premises
more commodious and fairly suitable for the purpose,
which are still occupie*! by the college, namely a
three-storey brick veneered building at the corner of
Broadway and Edmonton Streets. These, though far
superior in accommodution to the (juartera previously

Sfl

rogress
Bquire-
1- West
ited by
tion of
inistry
es and
accom-
•iptiona

the fall

7. J. W.

!ar, and
ifessors,
Ph.D., a
IS taken
ith the
effected
Depart-
ning of
devote
ion as
ice and
n, Ont,
ng the

tie class
d third
The
t abso-
e, and
remises
mrpose,
mely a
)rner of
ugh far
viously

■/.

S .^1

II- )

. :

lit

OIJR EARLY EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENTS.

277

occupied, have long since become too small, and are
otherwise unsuitable, thus making it highly necessary
that the college should have a building of its own
erected.

" The attendance of the first year numbered only
seven students, the decision to open classes having
been reached too late in the year to admit of sufficient
publicity being given to the fact throughout the
country. For the past two years there have been
over seventy in the classes, which is certainly a highly
creditable showing for a history of practically little
more than four years.

" At the end of the first year there were no gradu-
ates to present themselves at the University convoca-
tion for degrees ; at the end of the second year two
received the degree of B.A., namely, Miss Earle and
Mr. J. D. Hunt ; the third year three, Messrs. Garratt,
Shipley and Tufts, were sent up for similar parch-
ments ; the fourth year saw the number increased to
five; the fifth year it had grown to six; and it is
expected that the convocation of next June will see
about twelve come forward to bow at the feet of the
Chancellor and receive their B.A. hoods, thereby
swelling the number of graduates to the respectable
total of thirty.

" Besides the Principal, and Professors Cochrane and
Laird, the first College staff" included, as tutor of
French, Mons. Le Chevalier de la Mothe. Subse-
quently Rev. A. Stewart, B.D., was appointed a tutor,
and at the end of a year he was made a professor.
Mr. Ed. Bourgeois, LL.B., succeeded M. de la Mothe
as tutor in French. Mr. T. J. McCrossan, B.A., was
the next to occupy a position on the College staff*; he
served very efficiently for two years as tutor in
Classics, while pursuing at the same time his B.D.
course under Prof. Stewart. His successor was Rev.
J. H. Riddell, B.A., B.D., who still performs the work

S78

MANITOBA MEMOllIt:S.

required in this department. The latest addition to
the staff is Mr. W. F. Osborne, B.A., who recently
graduated with high honors from Toronto University,
after pursuing his course of study at Victoria College.
He has charge of the Department of Moderns. The
names menticned comprise the staff' as it now is, by
whom the work is done with some occasional assist-
ance from student-tutors.

" Though laboring under many inconveniences and
disadvantages, the students of V/esley College h^ve
upheld the honor of their alma mater in carrying oif
their fair share of the medals and scholarships of the
University.

" Financially, Wesley College is sustained chiefly by
the liberality of the people of Manitoba and the
North- Wesi;, who, in an unexampled way, undertook
to boar the heavy burden because of their conviction
of the absolute necessity of the establishment of such
an institution in the interests of the Methodist Church.
The annual givings of the people to this cause, to-
gether with a grant from the Educational Fund of the
Church, amount to about $10,000. The Bursar, Rev.
Dr. Sparling, visits all parts of the country in pre-
senting the claims of the College ; and the remarkable
success in sustaining its interests is due to his untir-
ing energy and the hearty co-operation of the minis-
ters of the denomination and the loyalty of the people
throughout the bounds of the Manitoba and North-
West Conference.

" The College also commends itself to the sympathy
and support of the Church in Eastern Canada, seeing
that its work is to a great extent of a missionary
character. One of its graduates is now a missionary
in China, and many other missionaries will be found
in both the foreign and domestic fields who will have
received their training here.

" Tlie affairs of Wesley College are under the able

OUR EARLY EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENTS.

279

dition to
recently
niversity,
a College,
-ns. The
ow is, by
al assist-
ances and
ege huve
Tying o»*
ips of the

chiefly by
and the
indertook
jonviction
it of such
it Church,
cause, to-
nd of the
rsar, Rev.
in pre-
markable
lis untir-
he minis-
he people
d North-

jympathy
ia, seeing
lissionary
lissionary
be found
will have

management of a Board of thirty-six members, of
whom eighteen resident in Winnipeg constitute the
Executive. The officers of the Board are : Mr. J. A.
M. Aikins, Q.C., Chairman ; Mr. J. H. Ashdown, Vice-
Chairman ; Rev. Principal Sparling, Bursar ; Mr. G. H.
Campbell, Secretary ; Dr. Laird, Assistant Secretary.

" Wesley College, including the site and building,
cost in round figures $100,000 — something over rather
than under that sum. The subscription list amounts
to between S94,000 and $95,000, of which about
$67,000 is already paid in. With improvements made
and increase of value of the land, the property is con-
sidered to be worth at present about $125,000.

" The registered attendance of students this year is
127. There are 49 graduates in Arts and 2 in Divin-
ity. The students in attendance last year numbered
121 ; those of the year before, 83. There are out in
the work of the ministry 35 who have attended the
College, of whom 13 are graduates ; and there are 28
probationers now attending."

• the able

CHAPTER XVIII.

;!■; 1

/]l

I '

' ■ i' 3

TWO MISSIONARY JOURNEYS INTO THE

INTERIOR.

In June, 1874, a strong detachment of the Mounted
Police Force, under the command of Colonel French,
left Winnipeg for Fort Pelly and Swan River, where
they were to have their headquarters, at least for a
time. I presume it was in view of the line of the
C. P. R. passing through that region on its way to the
Rockies and the Pacific Coast that the Government
of the day decided to centralize the force at that
point; but as the route was soon changed so as to
pass through the country a long way to the south and
through a prairie instead of a thickly wooded and
often swampy region, this most unsuitable place was
abandoned, and great loss incurred by the heavy ex-
penditures made in surveying the line and in building
a steam saw-mill, stables and barracks, and officers'
quarters, etc., at Swan River.

At the date referred to it was thought that large
settlements would soon spring up in tht't region, and
that these incoming settlers, together with those
already there, as well as the police and a large band
of Indians near by, would render it the duty of the
Church to establish a mission among them, and so

TWO MISSIONARY JOURNEYS.

281

^*-«fc'-

bring Gospel ordinances within their reach. As yet
the place was far distant from any mission and had
not been visited by a missionary.

It was in order that I might be able to come to an
intelligent conclusion as to our duty as a Church to
these far away pe >ple that I decided on a journey
thither. In an interview with Colonel French in
regard to the matter, I received a very kind invitation
to accompany the force and to share " pot luck " with
the officers and men during their journey. Accordingly
I started from Winnipeg on the 18th of June, and over-
taking them in camp near Portage la Prairie, I held
service and preached r,t 11 a.m., and then preached
again in the chutch in the village in the evening.
On Mondaj'^ evening we camped at Totogan, near
where the "White Mud River" enters Lake Manitoba,
and proceeding during the week, crossed that
crooked little stream at no less than three crossings,
and also the Little Saskatchewan River, and made
our way over the Riding Mountain and across the
prairies until we reached Shoal Lake on Saturday, the
26th, where we camped for several days while a depot
for supplies was being built, and where a number of
the men and horses were left for a time. On the
Sabbath I preached once or twice to an attentive
audience. On the 30th we struck our tents again and
moved on toward our destination, crossing many
leagues of beautiful farming prairie land and fording
several streams — such as Bird Tail and Shell Rivers
and others — and clambering up and down many high
banks, which seemed as we viewed them at first

282

MAKITOBA MEMORIES.

,)' (

llUi

-1 'i

i:l ■!

well-nigh insurmountable, until at length, weary with
travelling, we reached and looked in upon Fort
Pelly"; and then pushing on twelve miles farther we
came to Swan River barracks, where we found a
resting place on the 6th of July.

Fort Pelly was simply a Hudson Bay Company's
trading post, consisting of a store, dwelling and cer-
tain stores and outhouses, the premises surrounded by
a stockade, which was connected with a small farm
under cultivation, and all in charge of a very kind
Presbyterian, a Mr. McBeth, from whom I obtained
much information. Colonel French, and in fact all
the officers and men, treated me with much respect
and kindness throughout the journey ; Dr. Kitson and
Inspector Dickens, son of the great novelist, sharing
their tent accommodations with me.

Several of the young men of the force were graduates
of European universities ; but unsteady habits, in
most cases, had resulted as never anticipated by their
parents or themselves.

Captain John French, a brother of the Colonel, poor
kind-hearted, impulsive fellow, lost his life at Batoche
in 1885, through incautiously exposing himself from
a window after the battle was over, when a miserable
half-breed rebel shot and killed him instantly. It
was some satisfaction that his slayer, being seen by
one of our volunteers, was in turn shot and killed only
a few moments later.

After such a survey of the surrounding country as
was practicable, and after visiting the few settlers, I
arranged my three appointments for the following

TWO MISSIONARY JOURNEYS.

283

>ary with

)on Fort

rther we

found a

ompany's
and cer-
unded by
lall farm
ery kind
obtained
fact all
1 respect
itson and
), sharing

raduates
abits, in
by their

►nel, poor
Batoche
elf from
aiserable
itly. It
seen by
led only

untry as
itt^ers, I
Dllowing

Sabbath thus : Barracks at ten o'clock, Pelly at two,
and then Chief CotieV twenty miles distant, at seven ;
but I was unable to fill the last appointment through
failing to have present an interpreter, a disappoint-
ment which I very much regretted. At my service
at the fort I baptized several Indian children.

A SNAKE STORY.

The barracks at Swan River were located on a
rocky hill which was specially noted for the multi-
tudes of snakes, said to be harmless, which were
known for years to have infested the place. In the
early spring they were wont to crawl from their
winter quarters in the crevices of the rocks, and
seek more warmth and comfort in the sunshine,
where, in masses often of almost incredible size and
numbers, they coiled and wriggled until by an
increasing vitality they should feel themselves ready
for their accustomed summer pursuits. The sight
was not a pleasant one to the police, who, after
consultation, decided upon a war of extermination.
The attack was to be made on the Queen's birthday,
and in this wise : Two detachments of fifteen men
each were matched for a snake-killing game, which
>vas to occupy just half an hour. A number of
empty flour barrels v/ere placed in convenient
positions, into which the captured ones were to be
thrown, whether living or dead, and then at the
close of the half hour, the detachment having the
largest showing would be proclaimed and rewarded
as per agreement. The result of this sanguinary

I i ■

? •

if!

»'ii

\'- !

m; i

' .';

284

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

attack upon their snakeships, as I was assured by an
officer present on the occasion, was that there were
eleven thousand fewer snakes on that stony hill than
before it began — a very good showing for that half
hour's slaughter. The same officer also estimated
that not less than twenty thousand of these reptiles
were killed during that spring. They were decidedly
scarce at the date of our arrival.

This round trip, as I made it, extended to about
seven hundred miles, and during the journey out,
which occupied over twenty days, I held services
and preached on four Sabbaths. Returning with my
kind and good roadster, " Nechie," I made the run in
six days, but we were homeward bound, and the
trails being in good condition, and leaving each morn-
ing at 4.80, we were able to make, without injury to
horse or driver, an exceptionally good run. Before
parting with Colonel French I had arranged for
accommodations for a missionary to be sent on my
return home. In due course, the brother, accom-
panying another party of men going out to join the
force, reached his post and entered upon his duties.
He was charged with the responsibility not only of
giving ministerial attention to the Police and of
preaching to them, but also of visiting the settlers
and the Indians and of making special efforts for
their evangelization. His mission, I am sorry to
r .yy, proved a failure. He was poorly adapted to the
position, the Police did not take kindly to him, and
po after about three months he became discouraged
and left the mission. The results were very disap-

TWO MISSIONARY JOURNEYS.

285

}d by an
ere were
hill than
;hat half
stimated
! reptiles
lecidedly

to about

ney out,

services

with my

e run in

and the

;h morn-

ajury to

Before

ged for

on my

accom-

join the

duties.

only of

and of

settlers

arts for

orry to

i to the

im, and

juraged

' disap-

pointing to me, but I trust we were both instrumental
to some extent at least, in doing good to those to
whom we preached " the everlasting Gospel."

Soon after my return a sore trial came to our
home. Our son was stricken down with the prevailing
Red River fever, and for nearly two months vibrated
'twixt life and death. On two occasions we were
forced to regard him as having passed away, but
the Lord's "good hand was upon him and upon us
for good," aud after distressing solicitude on our
part and inexpressible suffering on his, his health was
restored. In the latter part of September I attended
the first General Conference in Toronto, which con-
summated the union of the following Conferences :
The Wesleyan Conference of Canada, The Wesleyan
Conference of Eastern British America, and the
Methodist New Connexion of Canada; the unitinir
bodies to be henceforth known as " The Methodist
Church of Canada."

My second missionary journey into the interior
was very unlike the first, and I will avail myself of
the report I made thereof to the " Mission Rooms,"
and which Dr. Wood published in due course in the
Missionary Notices, and which may instruct or
interest some who have not before read it.

" On the 7th December last, it was my privilege to
assist in the opening services of a new church on the
High Bluff Mission, about forty-eight miles west of
Winnipeg. My good Brother Fawcett has cause for
rejoicing in the completion of so comfortable a church
at a point where it was so much needed. Mr. W.

' 286

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I It

Gowler, whom I found, on my first visit in 1868, more
than ready to give me a hearing, and to show kind
hospitality, has by the power of grace become a
happy, consistent and zealous Christian, and as the
Lord has prospered him in wor' Hy pursuits, he has
evinced a commendable liberality in giving several
acres of land near his residence for church premises,
besides a considerable sum in contributions, and a
good deal of labor on the building. The opening
services were attended by large and seemingly devout
congregations, upon whom gracious influences rested
during the day, as a result of which special services
were commenced. On my return home, Monday
evening, I found the Rev. E. R. Young waiting, with
Indians, dogs and sleds, to take me to Berens River, on
my long trip to visit the Indian missions of the north.
I was led to decide on making this trip by a conviction,
long felt, that I could not discharge aright my duties
either to the Missionary Committee, or the mission-
aries, without such a knowledge of the field and the
work as can be secured only by actual observation.
My purpose had been to make the journey during
the summer, but I chose the winter instead, from a
wish to get in my report before next Conference,
because of a saving of time in making the trip —
larger numbers of Indians to be met at certain points,
and greater press of duties in Manitoba in the
summer ; besides which, I desired, as a means to an
end, a just appreciation of the toils, privations, ex-
posures and expenses inseparably connected with the
long winter trips in this ' Wild North Land,' which
are being made by my brethren in the prosecution of
the great work of evangelization. To be the more
systematic in my statement, I shall group my obser-
vations in the following order : The journey made,
the country passed through, the missions visited.
" The journey extended to a distance of well nigh

ri : ;

68, more

ow kind

ecome a

1 as the

, he has

several

)remises,

3, and a

opening

Y devout

3S rested

services

Monday

ng, with

Fliver, on

le north.

nviction,

ly duties

mission-

and the

jrvation.

during

from a

ference,

trip —

points,

in the

is to an

ons, *.x-

vrith the

which

ution of

e more

Y obser-

made,

0(1.

ell nigh

>
93

>
SO
H

D
O

PO
>;

r
o

288

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

■t.

one thousand two hundred miles, occupied twenty-
eight travelling days, and was performed by some
walking, and a good deal of riding in dog-sleds. The
sixteen dogs, four sleds, four Indians, and two mis-
sionaries made up such a procession, as we left in
the early morn of December 9th, as would have
brought to the front a crowd of spectators had it
appeared on King Street, Toronto, instead of the Red
River of the North Let me describe. Foremost of
all was the ' runner,' Jake Savanas, or South wind, a
fat young Indian, a good runner, a still better feeder.
Then came the Rev. E. R. Young, with his valuable
train of dogs, and a sled, heavily laden with supplies
needed at home. Next in order, my cariole, with its
one hundred and eighty pounds, more or less, of hu-
manity ; and how much of bedding, clothing, pemmi-
can, etc., I know not; and then two other trains,
loaded with flour, pork and fish, either for use on the
trip or to meet the wants of the people at Berens
River. Two of the four teams of dogs and sleds
were required for my use, the other two were inde-
pendent though ' attached,* for reasons sufficiently
apparent. The dog-sled, used as a cariole, is made of
thin oak, about an inch thick, fourteen or eighteen
inches wide, and about ten or twelve feet long ; with
the front end turned up like a skate, while the sides
and back are made of parchment drawn tightly
around a framework, and so hinged to the bottom of
the sled as to yield a little when it runs against
blocks of ice or trees, and thereby escape being
wrecked, even though the passenger experiences an
unpleasant squeeze from the collision. The whole
thing is very light, and runs easily and rides smoothly
on smooth ice, or a well-beaten road ; otherwise, not.
My experience in dog-sledding was of the following
order : First period —quite amusing ; the thinness
of the oak bottom and the pliability of the sides

TWO MISSIONARY JOURNEYS.

289

iwenty-
y some
s. The
wo mis-
left in
d have
had it
Me Red
most of
Lwind, a
• feeder,
valuable
supplies
with its
3, of hu-
pemmi-
' trains,
e on the
Berens
d sleds
te inde-
ciently
iiade of
ghteen
; with
le sides
tightly
)tom of
against
being
nces an
whole
[loothly
se, not.
lowing
inneas
sides

render it a springy sort of thing ; and as it runs over
an uneven surface, the bottom changing quickly from
the straight to the convex, and then to the concave,
and back to the straight again — the sides meanwhile
working like the leather sides of a bellows — it seems
almost a thing of life, and might easily suggest to a
half -awake passenger the idea of his being a sort of
second Jonah, who by some hook or crook had got
inside some monster, who, though on the ice, was
making desperate strides toward an opening, through
which to plunge with his victim into his native ele-
ment, the * vasty deep.' Two months before this, to
a day, I was enjoying a ride on one of the beautiful
and comfortable Pullman cars, between Chicago and
St. Paul. Between that ride and this there was but
little semblance, save that in each one is conscious of
being strangely jerked, feet foremost, toward some
place, he scarcely knows where. The second period
— barely enjoyable, with interruptions; sitting for
hours, not as in a chair, but after the fashion of a
jack-knife half open, with an occasional let down,
when the sled drops from a cake of ice or log, while
the dogs are at a trot, or to be capsized and find one's
self as helpless as an Indian babe in a ' moss-bag,' to
say nothing of tlie cool attentions of Jack Frost, when
thermometers indicate forty or fifty degrees below
zero. These things act as interruptions to the barely
enjoyable in a dog-sledder's experience. The third
period is one of desire to have done with dog-sledding
for ever. This I reached while yet far away from
the home-side end of my journey. The dog- train is
managed by a driver running behind without any
reins, but with many words of which ' yee,' ' chaugh *
and ' march ' are among the most important, and in
some instances the least objectionable ; to these
words are added certain persuasive measures in
which a whip, often loaded with shot, is brought into
10

Itfl

290

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

( !

!l,|ii:

',i I

painful requisition. Unlike the horse or ox, the dog
speaks out his feelings in relation to these passing
matters. By ' running ' in this connection I do not
mean that either Indians or dogs literally run ; nor
do they walk much ; both take a kind of ' shack/ a
sort of nondescript gait, which they can do very
well, even to the extent of sixty or seventy miles per
day, on a pinch. In that case they set off from camp
at two or three in the morning, and deducting simply
brief rests, during which two meals are taken by the
men, they continue running until sunsetting, or even
late in the evening when the end of the journey is to
be reached. These long day journeys can only be
made with good dogs, and on smooth ice or roads. To
those who have not witnessed it, the statement that
these men can travel so far in a day seems incredible;
but so much for use. And let no one imagine that
all this is done quite easily ; not so, these achieve-
ments are the results of straining, fatiguing and
wearing efforts, which in many cases are followed by
an early breakdown.

" The camp for the night is quickly made by all
hands setting to work — some scraping back snow,
some cutting spruce boughs and carpeting the place,
building up a back wall with them about three feet
high, and others getting fuel for the fire. Thawing
fish for the dogs, getting supper, getting frost and ice
from clothes, preparing flat cakes and cooking pork
for the next day, constituted the work of the evening
around the camp-fire. Then after our evening hymn
and prayer the weary ones retired for rest in the
open wild, sometimes with snow falling thickly and
wind blowing sharply, with ' spruce feathers ' under
them and a blanket or two over them, to sleep com-
fortably sometimes. I found that as long as I could
avoid turning in bed I could keep warm, but to turn
or to strike a match to see my watch, for I kept time

i ii-

the dog
passing
'. do not
iin ; nor
ihack/ a
do very
liles per
m camp
r simply
1 by the
or even
ley is to
only be
ads. To
lent that
credible;
ine that
achieve-
ing and
owed by

by all
k snow,
e place,
ree feet
hawing
and ice
ng pork
evening
ighymn

in the
kly and
under
[ep com-

I could

to turn
jpt time

TWO MISSIONARY JOURNEYS.

291

for the men, was to give the cold an entrance, ami
then to sleep or to shiver became the question.
Among the last things done before sleep, and the
first on waking by most of the men, was to drink
strong tea and smoke tobacco, large quantities of
which had to be supplied them. Mor can such ex-
ertions be sustained, and such intense cold endured,
without frequent replenishings with nourishing food.
Four meals a day are requisite ; a strong tea, pemmi-
can, or pork, or venison, or fish, with flat cakes often
baked in fat, seem necessary. In these almost Arctic
regions such a head of steam as is requisite can be
kept up only by a heavy supply of fuel. This will
account for the fact that the supplies for one of these
trips in the land of ' magnificent distances ' and high
prices, run up to an amount that cannot but astonish
the uninitiated. The different stages in my journey
were : from Winnipeg to Berens River, about five
days ; thence to Norway House, four days ; thence to
Oxford House, five days ; the return trip occupying
about the same time. During these twenty-eight
days I camped out some twenty-three or twenty-four
nights, some of which were colder than any I had
ever before experienced. My aim was to walk about
five or six miles a day, but in crossing a long rough
portage I made one day about fifteen miles, and suf-
fered for it too.

"The country through which I passed is one in
whose praise I cannot say much. From Winnipeg to
the last house in the lower settlement, about thirty-
five miles, the land resembles the other portions of
Manitoba, rather flat, some timber, but generally
prairie ; the soil, however, of the richest description.
From that point to Lake Winnipeg, about fifteen
miles, we passed over a marshy, muskegy region. The
beach at the lake is high, made up of sand and flat
stones. Once on the ice of this great lake, which is

292

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

nearly three hundred miles long, and of peculiar
shape, we struck for the western shore, along which
we found for a long distance large quantities of tim-
ber, mostly poplar, which may yet serve us in Mani-
toba for building purposes and for fuel. The soil
here is no doubt very good.

" Our day's run brought us to the region of ever-
green trees — spruce, Norway pines, all too small to be
of much value except for fuel or fences. Here I had
my first night in a winter camp. From that point
until I came back to it, excepting barely portions of
country near Berens River, I saw very little afford-
ing any encouragement to the agriculturist. In
fact, there are two things which would discourage
any farmer, and which must be met all through this
northern region — want of soil and want of season ;
soil in depth and of season in length. As a general
thing the soil barely covers the rocks to a depth
sufficient to grow shrubs or small trees, whose roots
often strike down into the clefts of the rocks. In
the lake there are two large islands, on which timber
large enough for saw logs, or for small frames, can be
obtained. On one of these a steam saw-mill has been
recently erected, and from the other Mr. E. R. Young
obtained the timber used in the buildings he had
erected on his mission premises, drawing it with dogs
across the ice, a distance of ten or twelve miles. From
Norway House to Oxford House the country seemed
to have no higher destiny than to be what it now is,
the roaming, feeding and hiding ground of game and
fur-bearing animals, and the home of those who hunt,
trap, fish, or ' trip ' for a living. The soil is thin and
poor, the timber fit only for fuel, or to supply poles
for the Indian's cabin, or for his use in making the
traps or deaf' falls wherewith he kills his game.
Small lakes, rivers, marshy grounds, tamarac swamps
and rocky hills — these make up the \ariety between

TWO missionahy jouukeys.

29S

peculiar
r which
of tim-
n Mani-
rhe soil

of ever-
Eill to be
re I had
it point
tions of
5 afford-
rist. In
jcourage
igh this
season ;
general
a depth
►se roots
eks. In
1 timber
can be
las been
. Young
he had
ith dogs
From
seemed
now is,
ime and
lo hunt,
hin and
ly poles
cing the
game,
swamps
)etween

those two points. Unless valuable minerals should
be discovered, I should think that fifty years hence a
thousand acres of this land might be worth a thousand
cents.

" On the east shore of Lake Winnipeg there are
large quantities of iron sand, which the magnet takes
up readily ; what this may betoken I know not The
tracks of game and fur-bearing animals, however, all
through the north rn region, abound, while in the
lakes and the rivers the finest fish in the world are to
be found. Fish is the main dependence of the people
as food for themselves and dogs. During the trapping
season the Indians are obliged to scatter in every
direction. We saw the wood traps all along the
shores of the lakes and rivers as we passed, and the
number of skins of beaver, otter, mink, fox, lynx,
bear, etc., which these hunters bring into the Hudson
Bay Company stores at the different trading posts,
all tell of their success.

"The missions I visited belong to the Methodist
Church ; no other denomination has ever occupied this
ground.

" The Rossville Mission is very pleasantly situated
on the shore of a beautiful little lake, within two
miles of Norway House post, and is the oldest and by
far the strongest of our Indian missions in the North-
West. It was established in 1840 by the Rev. Mr.
Rundle, Wesleyan missionary from London. The
church was built by Rev. Mr. Evans in 1844, and
enlarged by Rev^ G. McJougall in 1861-2. In look-
ing over the register of baptisms and marriages,
which has been carefully kept from tlie first, I found
the first baptism recorded on May 28th, 1840, by Mr.
Rundle, and the last on January 3rd, 1875, by myself ;
between these dates one thousand five hundred and
sixty baptisms were registered. Mr. Rundle was
succeeded by the late Rev. James Evans, who, in

I If:

294

Manitoba memories.

!iM ,

liii,

labors and travels and successes, was 'more abuil-
dant/ and whose name is ever mentioned by these
Christian Indians with profoundest respect and grati-
tude. Probably one thousand Indians or more con-
sider this place, and neighborhoods adjacent, their
home. The mission itself embraces a large number
of families who live in very comfortable and clean-
looking little houses, not far from the church and
school and mission house. ...

" Since the Rev. Mr. Evans, the mission has been
occupied by Bev. Messrs. Hurlburt, Brooking, George
McDougall, Stringfellow, E. S. Young, and their
present pastor, Mr. Ruttan, all of whom have
been made great blessings to this once benighted
people. At present there is a membership of three
hundred and eighty-one, of whom forty -seven are on
trial, making a net increase this year of sixty-four.
There are eighteen classes with leaders and assistant
leaders, one day-school and one Sabbath-school at
Rossville, and one day-school and a Sabbath-school at
' Crooked Turn,' about eight miles away. In these
schools there are about one hundred and fifty
scholars.

" At the love-feast there were present three hun-
dred people, while nearly two hundred came to the
Lord's table, among whom one was over one hundred
years of age, and one came one hundred miles to
attend the services.

" New Year's day was ' a high day ' with the Indi-
ans of Rossville, over five hundred of whom feasted
on * fat things,* all of which were gratis to the
feasters. From morn till even the eating weiit
briskly on amid indication of good appetites, and
great enjoyment, and \mt little weariness. I reached
the mission on my return trip from Oxford, about
10 a.m., just in time for the feast. In the evening
they had the public meeting with * Big Tom ' for a

li?

two MISSIONARY JOURNEYS.

295

B abun-
y these
d grati-
•re con-
it, their
number
1 clean -
pch and

as been
George
d their
fi have
nighted
>f three
are on
ty-four.
.ssistant
shool at
choolat
a these
fi%

!e hun-

to the

undred

liles to

e Indi-
feasted
to the
went
s, and
eached

about
vening

for a

chairman, who, by the way, is a good man and
true, but oh, so slow in getting up to speak, and, in
speaking, exceedingly slow. Just imagine a great
tall man getting up an inch at a time, and waiting
between the inches. But he got all the way up at
last, and spoke, I presume, very sensibly, which is
more than many a white man docs who gets up with
less hesitancy. A number of speeches were made,
and a very enjoyable meeting indeed terminated in
good time. I visited both schools, and while pleased
with the appearance of the children, regret that I
cannot report more favorably of their study of the
English language. . . .

" The Rev. Mr. Ruttan has succeeded admirably at
this post; his kind, prudent and Christian walk, and
his zealous and faithful ministry have borne fruit
abundantly, while his excellent young wife, right
from the Wesleyan Ladies' College, Hamilton, only a
few weeks elapsing from the day she left her studies
till she entered upon her duties in this far-off mission,
has been ' a helper indeed ' to her husband. Long
may these devoted servants of Christ be spared to
each other, the Church, and the great work they are
now so heartily and so cheerfully prosecuting.

•* At Norway House I received the most kind and
considerate attention from the Chief Factor, Mr. Ross,
and also from Messrs. Sinclair and McTavish ; in fact,
this holds good of all the officials of the Hudson Bay
Company at every post I visited. They are all mani-
festly interested in the mission work, and in sympathy
with our missionaries, of whom they spoke to me in
the kindest and most commendatory terms.

"The mission at Jackson's Bay, near Oxford
House, and about two hundred miles north-east from
Norway House, was established at a more recent
period, and has been occupied by Rev. Messrs. Stein-
hauer, Brooking, Stringfellow, Sinclair and the present
missionary, Mr. German.

;;>

296

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

h^li'

;! \

"At the outset, premises as mission and school
houses and a church were erected, and, I understand,
paid for by the Missionary Society in England. The
expenditure must have been very heavy. At the
present time the tendency of the settlement seems
towards the fort, which is about fourteen miles from
the mission house at the bay. The decision to build
a church near the fort was a wise one. Here large
numbers collect every season for trading purposes,
and several families reside permanently, who, with
the officers and servants of the company, will make a
good congregation throughout the year. A beautiful
site has been selected and a comfortable church
erected, and is now in use, though not quite finished.
The mission house at the bay is occupied by Mr.
German, our bachelor missionary, who has his inter-
preter and family residing in a portion of the build-
ing, by whom he gets his ' house-keeping ' managed.
A comfortable bu''ding, comparatively new, is used
both for the school and the place of worship. It
seems necessary to keep these two extreme e;ids of
an awkwardly shaped mission, as many familiets will
continue to reside at the bay on account of an excel-
lent fishery there, while others will reside near the
fort as employees of the Company. In working the
mission, Mr. German gives one Sabbath at the old
fort, and the next at the old mission, holding two
services at each place, with prayer-meeting, and class
and Bible-class during the week, as he can get them
together. During the summer a school is kept open
at the bay, with about forty children, but in winter
the families scatter, as elsewhere, to their hunting-
grounds, and the school is interrupted. The member-
ship when Mr. G. went there in September, 1873,
consisted of about sixty. Since that date he has
received fifty-seven on trial, and the membership is
now one hundred and seventeen. He also visits an

TWO MISSIONARY JOURNEYS.

297

school

srstand,

i. The

At the

b seems

es from

bo build

re large

iirposes,

o, with

make a

eautiful

church

inished.

by Mr.

s inter-

e build-

anaged.

is used

lip. It

eiids of

ieo will

excel-

sar the

ng the

he old

ig two

d class

them

t open

inter

nting-

mber-

1873,

e has

hip is

Hts an

outpost about one hundred and fifty miles away,
where he has instructed and baptized a large number
who were unevangelized prior to the above-given
date. I was greatly pleased with the heartiness an<l
cheerful spirit manifested by Brother German in the
prosecution of his work, notwithstanding his lonely
position and hard field. * The Lord loveth a cheerful
giver,' whether the gift be in money or in service.

" We reached the mission on the evening of Christ-
mas day, after a very fatiguing day's run, from early
morn till long after dark. On Sabbath I preached
and gave the Sacrament, and baptized a child at 10
a.m. at the bay, and then we crossed over to the fort,
fourteen miles, and held service there. Tlie night
was the coldest I had ever experienced, and when wo
set off next morning before sunrise to cross the lake —
a distance of about forty miles, it is said — with wind
sharp ahead, neither present experience nor future
prospects for that day were very pleasing. The
Indians with me froze cheeks and ears in a very
general way, but said very little about it, while I felt
the cold very much with all my mummy-like wrap-
pings, till finally I had to get out and run to keep my
feet from freezing. The thermometer at the fort was
useless in such intense cold — I have no doubt it
should have gone down to fifty degrees below zero.
I mention this to show under what circumstances of
discomfort and peril our devoted missionaries are
often placed. Dr. Taylor once in his life endured the
almost purgatorial sufferings occasioned by the
swarms of mosquitoes, which gave him such a warm
reception in this same region, and glowingly did he
depict his sufferings. Once in my life, for a little
while, I have felt the discomfort and faced the peril,
and endured the toil of a trip through there in mid-
winter. But what is all this in either case to what
our dear brethren stationed out here have to meet

P m

r^ m

iJm

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" "it

h' \

Ih.i!

t ; I

I 1

298

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

with every summer and every winter — and are they
not equally susceptible to suffering as either of us ?

" Let our good brethren in the more comfortable
home-work bear them up in their prayers, and use all
allowable means to secure to them the most liberal
' appropriations.' These are the toilers who earn
and really need the highest salaries going. High
prices prevail, hungry Indians clamor, and perquisites
and presents are unknown — these are noteworthy
facts.

" The Nelson River Mission is situated about two
htmdred miles north from Norway House, and is the
most northerly point of our mission field. The work
of instructing these poor pagans was commenced by
Rev. E. R. Young during the occupancy of Rossville,
and by him a large number were baptized. Through
his representations and influence mainly, the authori-
ties of the Church were led to open a mission there,
and to appoint the Rev. J. Semmens as their first
missionary. Upon him rests the heavy responsibility
of making, if possible, this mission a success, and his
will be the honor in that case from the Church of the
future. As I understood that the Indians were gener-
ally away to their hunting-grounds, I decided not to
extend my long and tedious and costly trip to that
point; but, during my visit to Oxford House, the
missionary arrived at Norway House, so that on my
return I met him there, and received from him a full
statement of the work done and of his plans for the
future. During the last few months he has baptized
fifty-five persons, and conducted services regularly on
the Sabbath, with congregations not very large, but
attentive, some seven of whom have become com-
municants. According to th-:; returns made to the
Hudson Bay Company's officer, Mr. Ross, the Indians
in that vicinity numbered in 1872, fifty-five husbands,
having among them sixty-eight wives, ninety children,

TWO MISSIONARY JOURNEYS.

299

e they

us ?
3rtable
use all
liberal
3 earn

High
[uisites
rtTorthy

ut two
. is the
e work
Lced by
•ssville,
lirough
uthori-
i there,
ir first
sibility
^nd his
L of the
1 gener-
[ not to
to that
,se, the

on my
a a full
for the
apt i zed
arly on
'ge, but
e com-

to tlie
Indians
sbands,
hildren,

and fifteen widows ifcad several orphans ; but I believe
that there are other bands near by, so that Mr.
Semmens reckons about five h^odi-ed Indians as
placed under his pastoral care. According to the
judgment of Chief Factor Ross, as well as Rev. £. R.
Young, this field is a central and very important one,
which should be worked with energy and true faith.
" The new mission at Berens River is situated on
the shore of a pleasant little bay which puts in from
Lake Winnipeg, on the east side of the lake, and
about midwaj'^ from the mouth of Red River and
Norway House. The mission was opened by Rev.
E. R. Young in 1873. When the statement of Rev.
John Ryerson, as published in his book of travels
through this land in 1854, is remembered, that this
point ought to be made a mission, that the Indians and
the Company's officials desired it, and that missionaries
in passing had promised that they should have a mis-
sionary, and then the fact noted that, despite all this
importunity and recommendation and promise, no
missionary was sent until 1873, the old adage, 'large
bodies move slowly,' will be apt to occur to the
mind. On Sabbath, the 13th of December, I reached
this pleasantly- situated mission in time to enjoy a
service in the ' tabernacle,' as they call it, erected a
few months ago. Our arrival was followed by no
small stir among the natives, who, on the call of the
beautiful bell given by Jas. Ferrier, Esq., assembled,
and gave earnest attention to my message from
* Behold, I bring you glad tidings,' etc. Each Sab-
bath services are conducted in the Tabernacle at 11
a.m., in Indian, through an interpreter, and at 6 p.m.,
at the fort, in Englisli. Class and prayer-meetings
and a Bible-class are conducted in the afternoon or
during the week. At the three services I attended tlie
congregations were very encouraging — about twenty
received the Sacrament and three were baptized.

if^

300

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

!|i!!)i

it)

'. i

" As a centre, the mission is of great importance.
Large bands of Indians yet unchristianized can be
easily reached, as at Poplar River, Jack's Head, Sandy
Bar, Pigeon River and Grand Rapids, many of whom
will probably settle near the mission ere long.

" The fisheries and hunting-grounds are the best,
I suppose, on the lake. Being about midway between
Norway House and Red River, it will afford our mis-
sionaries, as they pass to and fro, a much needed and
quiet resting-place, securing to the mission a visit,
and to the weary travellers a home and a Sabbath
rest. To my mind the field here is attractive, and
the prospects of the mission are cheering. Mr. and
Mrs. E. R. Young are toiling hard, and even with
weeping, to scatter ' precious seed.' May they soon
realize the promise fulfilled, and ' come again with
rejoicing, bringing their sheaves with them.' I felt
it my duty here and elsewhere to speak with plain-
ness on the real mission of a missionary, informing
the Indians that it was not to scatter presents, either
of food or clothing, so much as to teach them the way
to the Saviour. The idea of some of them seems to
be that a missionary must be a sort of unvveariable
giver, and with such I am sure I must have made
myself very unpopular. In my judgment our mis-
sionaries will have to insist on a little more of ' self-
help ' among them. During my journey I had sev-
eral conversations with uninstructed pagans, all of
whom professed to feel dissatisfied with their position,
and to desire more light, and to be anxious for
instruction in the doctrines of Christianity. From
several 1 got a promise that they would pray to the
Great and Good Spirit to lead them into the true
light. Polygamy, a superstitious dread of their
medicine-men and conjurera, wandering habits, and
an idea that he who would teach them ought to feed
them to a considerable extent — these are obstacles

TWO MISSIONARY JOURNEYS.

301

portance.
I can be
d, Sandy
oi whom

(•

:he best,

between
our mis-
3ded and
a visit,
Sabbath
ive, and
Mr. and
^en with
hey soon
lin with
' I felt
h plain-
iforming
is, either
the way
seems to
eariable
^e made
►ur mis-
3f 'self-
ad sev-
, all of
)osition,
ous for
From
r to the
he true
f their
ts, and
to feed
wtacles

in the way of their Christianization, but they are
surmountable, and have been surmounted in thousands
of instances. The difficulty of mastering their miser-
able language so as to preach in it, or of getting the
truth properly before them through an interpreter, is
felt by all our missionaries. From them we need
fear neither violence nor opposition. The term
' savages,' if by any applied to the Indians of this
country, whether Christian or pagan, is a misnomer.
Openings for schools and missionaries abound — ' The
fields are white unto the harvest ' — the laborers are
comparatively few, and the funds are not as plentiful
as they should be in the treasury of a Church bought
with the Redeemer's blood.

"After parting with the kind people of Berens River
on the 11th of January, I reached home on Friday
the 16th, weary and sore indeed, better as I supposed
in health, and yet after the services of Sabbath the
reaction came, and for several days it seemed uncer-
tain wl other an attack of fever or inflammatory
rheumatism awaited me. However, deliverance came,
as has been usual with me, through the infinite mercy
and goodness of God. I am thankful that I have
been enabled to make the trip in the winter, but this
one, with its fatigue and exposure, must suffice for
me. Were I possessed of the vigor and activity and
endurance and lightness which were mine thirty
years ago, I might decide otherwise. Providence
permitting, I hope to start in a day or two for the
extreme limit of our Province to the westward, and
to visit the missions in that direction. This journey
over, I shall have visited each mission on this large
District since December 9th, excepting barely that at
Nelson River, and travelled one thousand two hundred
miles with dogs, and five hundred with my horses."

•'1

I H

CHAPTER XIX.

1 1

; !

! { !

li!

MV LAST HAND-SHAKE WITH AN HEROIC

MISSIONARY.

Before entering upon the subject indicated by the
above heading, I will make, by way of introduction,
brief references to the circumstances under which,
and to two or three consecrated men by whom, the
early missions of Methodism were established among
the aboriginal peoples of these great lone lands.

In the same year in which I was converted, and at
about the same time, now fifty-seven years ago, the
authorities of British Methodism, having decided
upon establishing certain missions in these Territories,
appointed the following brethren as missionaries to
the following places, viz. : Norway House, Lake
Winnipeg, James Evans ; Moose Factory, etc., George
Barnley; Lac-la-Pluie and Fort Alexander, William
Mason ; Edmonton and Rocky Mountain House,
Joseph Rundle ; James Evans, General Su2)erin'
tendent. Thus we trace up to its source a stream,
small indeed at the first, which has, nevertheless,
flowed on and on, ever widening and deepening as it
flowed, till it has become as a migiity river bearing
offers of life and salvation with manifold and great

LAST HAND-SHAKE WITH HEROIC MISSIONARY. 303

^1 i

^IROIC

I by the
duction,
: which,
lom, the
I among
Is.

, and at

ago, the

decided

ritories,

iries to

, Lake

George

(Villiam

House,

stream,
iheless,
g as it
rearing
great

benefits to tens of thousands of redeemed and immor-
tal men. The "day of small things" which some
despised has become a day of great things not now to
be despised even by our enemies. As we look over
this " list of stations " we may well be struck with
the vastness of that District ove^ which they extended,
of which Mr. Evans was appointed Chairman, and the
work throughout which he was to supervise ; and yet
right well did he accomplish the work given h' i to
do in that he visited every mission in his District, and
journeyed far into " regions beyond," preaching the
"everlasting Gospel." Thus this man of great
resources in himself, and of never failing courage,
and with his great heart all aflame with love to God
and humanity ; this heroic and zealous and success-
ful apostle to the Indians and Hudson Bay Com-
pany officials as well, literally rushed, now by canoe
of his own construction, and now by train of dogs of
his own training, from point to point in this country
of magnificent distances, proclaiming " the unsearch-
able riches of Christ," and declaring the way of
salvation to all from whom he might gain a hearing.
The dangers he faced, the toils and hardships he
endured, and the privations and vexatious trials which
he suffered were far beyond any that fell to the lot of
any of his associates or successors in this great work
of evangelization. Yet his faith failed not, and not
fearing " the wrath of man," he unflinchingly pressed
on in his work until relieved of his heavy responsi-
bilities, first by the authorities by whom he was
appointed to his difficult rnission, and then by the

' 11

304

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

iir

1 !

ever-observant and sympathizing Head of the Church,
who said, " It is enough ; come up higher."

It has been thought by some (perhaps uncharit-
ably) that missionaries sometimes have trenched
rather closely on the extravagant and the imagina-
tive in their reports given through the press and on
the platform, of scenes witnessed, perils braved, and
achievements effected by themselves. Be that as it
may, I have never read or heard of any such accusa-
tion against our sainted brother. He was too great a
man a .id too good a Christian to indulge in exaggera-
tion in order to self-laudation, or to gain popular
applause, while recounting the Lord's doings where
he toiled. In his Master's good time this worker
" was not, for God took him." The Lord of the great
harvest " can bury His workmen, and yet carry on
His work."

Of this band of pioneer missionaries there are other
names which should be held in grateful remembrance
by all who rejoice in the progress of the work of
grace among the Indians of the North- West. First
and foremost, next to that of Mr. Evans, is that of
Robert Rundle. His appointment was to " Edmonton
and Rocky Mountain House," a field fully one thousand
miles distant from any of his brother missionaries,
where, in the midst of the then wandering, warring,
and superstitious Crees and Stonies, he was to " lift
high " the blood-stained banner, and seek both to
teach the children and persuade these braves of the
plains to be at peace with each other and to be recon-
ciled unto God. The bearing of the teaching and

LAST HAND-rfHAKE WITH HEROIC MISSIONARY. 305

Church,

ncharit-
Tenched
magina-
3 and on
ved, and
lat as it
L accusa-
) great a
taggera-
popular
;s where
worker
he great
3arry on

example and efforts of Mr. Rundle and his successors
in this work on the safety of property and life, in the
case of many a traveller and trader, has been most
direct and influential for good. The rights, and even
lives, of the " pale faces " were not always accounted
very sacred by those who, having been often wronged
by the white man, sometimes avenged themselves
terribly, even upon the innocent, until the missionary
visited and taught and influenced them. Thus these
holy men, with trust in God, and yet, as men say,
" with their lives in their hands," ofttimes stood up
between imperilled ones and these avengers of blood,
rescuing those about to perish; and yet, in many
cases, they have received but little, if any, credit
for it.

Many of the fruits of the labors of Mr. Rundle
remain to this day. Among both Crees and Stonies
are those — long ago converted through his instru-
mentality — who testify with gratitude and deep feel-
ing to the light and blessedness of salvation which
came to them through his faithful and loving min-
istry. Mr. Rundle, I take it, was rather an evan-
gelizer than an organizer. Perhaps there was but
little opportunity for organizing in his day, and so
without any seeming centre of operation, he moved
as the Indians moved, following them to the buffalo
hunt or wherever they might roam, in order to have
opportunities of teaching their children and preach-
ing to and evangelizing their adults. A truly and
fully consecrated life was his, and not unworthy the
distinction conferred upon hini by the giving of his
90

■i'-

\ [

-;l

;!!'

!li5

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■^■fil'

306

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

name to a grand mountain with snow-clad peak
in the immediate neighborhood of Banff, which he
ascended, guided by an Indian convert (and, I judge,
was the first white man who ever did so), and which
is still called " Rundle Mountain," an everlasting mon-
ument, seen from afar, as is another great mountain
nearer Morley, appropriately called " McDougall
Mountain," in well deserved honor of the heroic and
now sainted George McDougall.

Mr. Rundle, after several years of toil in these vast
and wild regions,, returned to England, where, for
many years, he rendered very efficient service in the
home work. After a season of superannuation, he
was only recently called from labor to reward.

It would be inexcusable in me to pass over the
name of another in this " bright succession," who was
one of my early friends in the ministry, and is, by all
who know him, highly esteemed and honored for his
godly character and his " works of faith and labors of
love." I refer to Rev. Thomas Woolsey, the successor
of Mr. Rundle. I received from officers of the Hudson
Bay Company's service, more than a score of years
ago, most gratifying testimonies to his Christian
deportment and his self-sacrificing zeal as a mis-
sionary. Like Rundle, he traversed the great plains
with his pastoral charge, ever acting the part of a
good under-shepherd, even though perils had to be
braved and hardships endured. I met godly Indians
at Morley, quite recently, who gratefully and lovingly
remembered the good missionary and his work. Like
Evans and Rundle, Thomas Woolsey ajso has left i<j

LAST HAND-SHAKE WITH HEROIC MISSIONARY. 307

ad peak
\7hich he
I judge,
id which
ing mon-
nountain
cDougall
3roic and

tiese vast
here, for
3e in the
ition, he
d.

over the
who was
is, by all
for his
abors of
uccessor
Hudson
)f years
hristian
a mis-
plains
rt of a
i to be
Indians
)vingly
Like
left it^

to others to proclaim his exploits in the days gone
by, while with the Psalmist he ever exclaimed, " Not
unto us, O Lord, but unto thy name be all the
praise."

He, like his friend and predecessor, Mr. Rundle,
has but recently entered upon his everlasting rest.
The name of the missionary hero to whom the
remainder of this chapter will relate, and who was a
worthy successor of Evans, Rundle, and Woolsey, will
be readily anticipated. Dr. Chalmers has been credited
with the affirmation, " Methodism is Christianity in
earnest." He might have added, very truthfully,
that whenever that ceases to be true of Methodism,
there will be but little left worthy of extension or
preservation. What wonders have been accomplished
through the instrumentality of an " earnest ministry
and a working Church ; " and what opportunities,
more than golden, have been lost forever — aye,
criminally lost — through the dilatoriness of an un-
earnest ministry, and an inactive, ease-loving Church ?

George McDougall was a man of intense earnestness
from the date of his " second birth," until he " ceased
at once to work and live." Having given himself to
the mission work, " he counted not his life dear unto
himself " from that hour forward, but heroically, and
with full trust in God, set himself to face whatever
might threaten to obstruct his way, or hinder him in
the prosecution of that work.

" Send us a good, swimmer ; our last preacher was
drowned in trying to reach one of his appointments,"
w^as the earnest message sent to Bishop Asbury by n

••.IS

1.1
; in

ii i

I !!

I di

■■

308

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

hardy pioneer, when petitioning for a missionary
adapted to the requirements and difficulties of a new
field. It was well, both for himself and many others,
that George McDougall was a " good swimmer " — he
had need to be. Many a rushing and unbridged
stream was crossed by him, both in making and
fulfilling his appointments, without either boat or
raft or float of any kind, and thus for long years, not
alone by driving or riding or walking over roadless
prairies, but frequently by swimming unfordable
rivers and streams, he carried the "glad tidings" to
the un- Christianized humanity of the North- West.
Brave, earnest man,

' ' Whose living like I shall not find,
Whose faith and works were bells of full accord."

Concerning him and a host of others, who have
vanished out of our view, we cherish the hope

" That we shall meet,
In life complete,
At Jesus' feet,
And say a glad good morning, in a higher, brighter, happier
clime than this."

The Rev. George McDougall was born in Kingston,
1820; was born again in his nineteenth year; was
received on trial for the work of the ministry in 1850,
and owing to the special need of an ordained man
where he was laboring and also to his special fitness
for it, he was ordained in 1852. The various fields of
labor occupied by him, as the years went by, were :

Last hand-shake With HfiRotc missionary. .S09

ssionary
>f a new
Y others,
er "—he
ibridged
ing and
boat or
jars, not
roadless
fordable
ngs" to
h-West.

I."

10 have

happier

ngston,
r; was
ti 1850,
d man
fitness
elds of
were:

Alderville, Garden River, Rama, Norway House,
Victoria, Edmonton House, and Morleyville.

In July, 1875, after long years of acquaintance and
close friendship, the Rev. Dr. Wood and he met in our
little parsonage, Winnipeg, and after three days spent
in conferring with each other and myself, parted for
the last time.

On Monday Dr. Wood arrived by steamer from the

REV. GLDROE M 'DOUG ALL.

south, and in the evening he preached and ordained
a missionary in Grace Church. During the three
days of his stay with us we had consultations relating
to the management and prospects of the " Wesleyan
Institute," and the appointment of the Rev. Mr.
Manning, then with us in Winnipeg, to the Saskatche-
wan District, and other important matters. I was,
very unwillingly, in the minority in regard to Mr.

t ,!■

ti:
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j,-..jc:

^10

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

^ \M^^'

U i

i' !

i !l

Manning, for he was proving a great blessing in our
work on my District, to which he was specially
adapted, but of course the minority had to yield, and
Brother Manning went west. Dr. Wood took steamer
for home on the 21st of July.

On Sabbath, 1st of August, Mr. McDougall preached
in Grace Church and joined us in the Holy Com-
munion, and on the following Sabbath he took three
services in Winnipeg, while I ministered to the scores
of railroad men at Rat River and other points along
the line on the east side of the Red River.

Just then, when Mr. McDougall was preparing for
his return journey, exciting rumors came from Carl-
ton and still farther west, to the effect that the
Indians were threatening to give serious trouble.
Surveyors had been laying out the line of the railroad
and blocking out the land where they claimed owner-
ship, prior to any explanation of matters such as
sh^ii.ld have been given them, and to any ^reaty being
entered into. This certainly was an untvccountable
oversight. It was a fortunate circumstance that Mr.
McDougall was then within reach, and Lieutenant-
Governor Morris, sending for him forthwith, urged
him to undertake a journey among these distant and
much agitated tribes for their pacification and to
secure promises from them to meet a Government
Commission in the following summer, to arrange and
sign treaties, etc. But he was anxious to push on at
once, by the shortest and quickest route, for his
distant mission-home, from which he had been so long
absent, and so, hesitating to comply with the Gov-

Last hand-shake with heroic missionary. 311

g in our
specially
ield, and
: steamer

preached
>ly Com-
ok three
he scores
its along

iring for
om Carl-
that the
trouble,
railroad
i owner-
such as
ty being
ountable
that Mr.
utenant-
1, urged
tant and
and to
ernment
;nge and
sh on at
for his
I so long
he Gov-

ernor's request, he conferred with me on the subject.
My judgment was, that as the circumstances were
alarming, he should consent to go as requested, if the
Government would furnish a sufficient outfit of carts,
horses and provisions for the long journey, and for a
wise distribution of presents to the needy ones, and
also give him positive assurance that the Indians
should not be disappointed in the following summer,
by the non-arrival of the Commission. He there-
upon gave his consent, and in a few days all needful
authority from Ottawa was received, and all arrange-
ments requisite w^ere made and he was ready to begin
his journey.

On the 9th of August we grasped hands for the last
time, when I was much surprised by his saying,
" Brother Young, we wdll not likely ever meet again in
this world. You are going back to the work in Ontario,
and I am undertaking a difficult and perilous journey
and task in order to pacify these excited Indians, and
I know not what may befall me ; and besides that, I
am frequently suffering from a sharp pain about my
heart, which came upon me while addressing large
meetings so often in Canada and England, together
with irregularities as to diet and hours of retirement
which seemed unavoidable. This pain has troubled
me a good deal during the last few days, but I hope
when I shall get out on the plains again, that the
change will bring me all right." I tried to utter a
few encouraging words, and we parted with a solemn
" Good-bye." His reference to that pain in the region
of the heart came forcibly to my mind when I received

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

the sad intelligence of his sudden and mysterious
decease on the western prairies.

Leaving Winnipeg, he struck first for Carlton and
thence to Prince Albert, and having interviewed the
natives at these points and by the route taken, he
started out westward for the big plains. Travelling
from camp to camp and meeting large numbers of
the already disturbed Indians, he explained to them
the matters in question, assuring them, according to
his instructions, that in the following summer Com-
missioners would be sent into their country to treat
with them. He was received everywhere with con-
fidence, and his words being believed, the Indian
mind all over the country was set at rest, despite
the efforts of agitators and the prophesying of the
envious.

In due course the Commissioners put in their ap-
pearance, and after a good deal of speech-making and
distributing of presents, the treaties were signed. In
January, 1876, it was found that the food supplies
with the mission families at Morley were running short,
and there being no parties available to employ as
buffalo hunters, he and his son and nephew left home
on a hunting expedition to secure the needed supply
of buffalo meat. On the 23rd of January, after a
successful but very hard day's work, they started at
nightfall to retrace their stops toward tlie camp,
wliich was about eight miles distant; and wlien
within two miles of tlie place, Mr. McUougall pro-
posed tliat his son, then walking and weary, should
take the pony he was riding, and proceed to the camp

LAST HAND-SHAKE WITH HEROIC MISSIONARY. 31 3

sterious

ton and
ved the
ken, he
avelling
ibers of
.0 them
ding to
T Com-
'O treat
bh con-
Indian
despite
of the

leir ap-
ng and
3d. In
applies
^ short,
)loy as
b home
supply
ifter a
'ted at
camp,
when
II pro-
should
camp

and make ready the supper. To this John demurred,
requesting his father to continue riding, while he
would follow the loaded sleighs as he had been doing;
whereupon, directing attention to a certain star toward
which they were to move, he set off, galloping his
pony in the direction indicated. They never saw him
again in life. " By a mysterious providence, never to
be revealed in this life, he failed to reach the camp and
perished on the plains. Diligent search was made at
once by his son, and then by a large number of anxious
friends, but it was not until the thirteenth day that
the frozen body was found, uninjured, and as if laid
out by loving hands for burial." His son, the Rev. John
McDougall, states in a beautiful memorial volume :
" As I looked at him and beheld his features, I said,
Whatever may have happened my father, he was
conscious at the last, and feeling that death was
upon him, he picked out a level spot and laid him-
self out straight and crossed his hands and thus pre-
pared to die. His face was perfectly natural, bearing
an expression of conscious satisfaction. Reverently
the body was lifted to the sleigh, and we started
that Sunday afternoon on our homeward journey."
He also adds, in reference to the sad occurrence, about
the cause of which there were so many differing
opinions : " My own theory is that some disease affect-
ing either his heart or his brain so acted upon him
that for the time being he was rendered unconscious
of his surroundings, otherwise I cainiot explain his
being lost."

As soon as the report reached me at Winnipeg, I

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MAI^ITOBA MEMORIES.

wired Dr. Sutherland in relation to it, and received
the following reply : " I fear there is absolutely no
hope. Thus has fallen one of the noblest and most
self-sacrificing missionaries that ever entered the
work. I feel as though in this calamity I had lost
a brother."

On the following Sabbath evening I preached a
memorial sermon in Grac. Church, from the text
(Genesis v. 24) : " He was not, for God took him."
In the concluding part of the discourse I remarked
as follows : " Our departed brother was a man of
wonderful resources, possessing more of what is
called * self-help ' than any one I had previously
known. His courage and presence of mind never
failed him, even amid scenes of greatest danger.
Circumstanced as we are to day, with but few facts
before us, we can scarcely avoid asking questions
which must remain unanswered, at least for the
present. What became the agency used in his dis-
missal from the toils and trials of this life ? \Vas it
what is now so often reported as the cause of sudden
death — ' heart failure ' ? Those of us who knew him
well cannot bring ourselves to believe that George
McDougall perished as an ordinary wanderer who
had missed his way perishes. And did he, suffering
the loss of consciousness for a time, regain it when
near his last moments ; and as he sank amid the
whirling clouds of frost and snow, did he realize the
presence and helping hand of an Almighty Saviour,
who so transfigured the driving snow-clouds as to

Last hand-shake with heroic missionary. 315

received
utely no
nd most
jred the
had lost

ached a
the text
>k him."
Bmarked
man of
what is
eviously
i never
danger,
jw facts
uestions
for the
his dis-
\Vas it
sudden
lew him
George
rer who
uffering
it when
nid the
ilize the
Saviour,
Is as to

cause them to seem but as the chariots and horses ot
light which were commissioned to bear his ransomed
and "released spirit away to the glorious presence of
Elijah's God ? Let all this be as it may, we are
confident that the seeming severity and desolation
by which the external circumstances attending Ms
decease were characterized, were in striking contrast
with what was internal to the departing servant of
his Lord. All there was calm, peaceful, blissful and
heavenly. ' He was not ' — that is, to those who
sought him, an embodied being. His body, once so
full of life and vigor, was near, and it may be that
his spirit, then separated from that body, looked
down upon them as they prosecuted their search,
while he was in blessed companionship with many
whom he had instructed and led to Christ, including
some even of his own loved ones who had passed
on before, he and they alike enjoying the * beatific
vision.'" All that wa^, mortal of our sainted brother
rests in the cemetery at Morley, where a substantial
and appropriate monument has been reared by those
who are following after. On the occasion of each
of my two visits to that beautifully situated mission,
in 1892 and 1893, I spent some time at the grave of
mv former associate in the work of the Master, while
my thoughts went forth to some period in the future
when I hope to meet him on the Mount of God.

It seems appropriate that this chapter should close
with the following brit'f sketch, written by the late
Rev. Dr. Stafibrd in 1883 :

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

" ENOCH WOOD SKINNER.

" Among those who accompanied the mission party
from Toronto to the North- West in 1868, was the
lad whose name heads this brief notice. For several
years he resided with the late Rev. George McDougall,
where he saw and heard much of missionary life,
learned the Cree language, and with the zealous
missionary travelled extensively through that great
country. After his i urn to Toronto to his parents
he was converted t Christ, and immediately his
heart was drawn t( vard the poor unevangelized
aborigines of the far west, whose habits, language and
needs he knew so well. Consulting frequently and
prayerfully with the Rev. Drs. Wood, Sutherland
and Young in relation to the matter, he finally ob-
tained permission to enter upon what he intended to
be his great life work, and started for the field of
toil he so greatly desired to occupy. His outfit was
secured at Winnipeg, and several hundreds of miles
journeyed over with his ponies and carts, and then
Enoch * was not, for God took him.' Alone on the
wild prairie, from an accidental discharge of his
gun, his young life was instantly terminated. How
very mysterious that he, as well as his sainted friend
McDougall, should have passed out of life, like Moses,
with no earthly friend near. It cannot be doubted
but that in his case the will was accepted, by the
Master, for the deed, and that in tlie great reaping
and rewarding day, Enoch Wood Skinner will 'stand
in his lot ' among that great multitude of earnest
workers, wlio, having sown * precious seed ' weeping,
shall come again witli rejoicing, bringing their sheaves
with them. The grave of this zealous young mis-
sionary is at Prince Albert, where a Methodist mission
was subsequently established."

ion party
was the
►r several
^Dougall,
lary life,
! zealous
lat great
3 parents
ttely his
mgelized
lage and
atly and
therland
lally ob-
ended to
field of
itfit was
of miles
nd then
on the
of his
I. How
i friend
e Moses,
doubted
by the
reaping
1 ' stand
earnest
i^eeping,
sheaves
tig mis-
mission

CHAPTER XX.

RETURNING TO ONTARIO.

I WAS led to decide in favor of this return by three
considerations, which I shall specify as follows :

First, my belief was then, as it is now, that, except
in the case of remote missions, our Methodist system
of itinerancy is far better adapted to the needs of the
people and to promote the edification and extension
of the Church, than is a settled pastorate. This
consideration seemed to me to be of special force in
my cuse, in 1876, because of the interblending of
educational with evangelistic interests in Winnipeg.

For eight years I had ministered to the congrega-
tion there, and for three years had been closely
connected with the management of the Wesleyan
Institute, a position which I deeply felt implied
and needed a scholarship and an experience such
as I could not lay any claim to. In view of these
combined interests, I felt certain that the Confer-
ence could easily sek^it from among its university
graduates a successor who should more efficiently
discharge these multiform duties than I could hope
to do. In order that such a turn in the great wheel
of our itinerancy miglit take place, I forwarded my

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

request for the double transfer — myself to the work
in Ontario, anc/ some more competent brother to
Winnipeg.

A second consideration which influenced me in
making the request was what I may designate as
an increasing weariness of "serving tables." My
position in that centre of communication with the
remote Indian missions of two Districts had rendered
it seemin!:^ly necessary for me to take on, with my
other duties, that of making purchases for the
missionaries and their families, such as might be
ordered, making payments out of the proceeds of
their "authorized bills" from the Mission Rooms,
and then securing their transportation by carts or
boats to their distant destinations. All this required
more attention to bookkeeping and more labor in
selecting and sending ofl" the required supplies than
was compatible with my other responsibilities, and
became exceedingly irksome and tiring, especially
when the requisitions called for more than appeared
to the oredit of the requisitionist.

A third consideration was a conviction that the
transfer sought would afford me greater opportunities
than I could otherwise enjoy of advocating the claims
of our missions in the North- West in committees and
at missionary anniversaries.

In connection with our making arrangements to
leave Winnipeg, the following testimonial addresses
were presented to me, the one by the late Chief
Justice Wood, and the other by the late Sir John C.
Schultz, afterwards Lieutenant-Governor of Manitoba :

RETURNING TO ONTARIO.

319

he work
other to

i me in
gnate as
IS." My
with the
rendered
with my

for the
night be
iceeds of
I Rooms,

carts or
required
labor in
ies than
bies, and
specially
appeared

that the
rtunities
le claims
tees and

iients to
addresses
be Chief
John C.
anitoba ;

"Reverend and Dear Sir, — It becomes us to
acquiesce in the decrees of Providence, and yet it is
no less becoming at times to manifest regret at the
substance of these decrees as they specially affect us.

" Your removal from this wide field of usefulness,
where you have so long endured hardship as a good
soldier of Jesus Christ, maintaining a character with-
out reproach, and in the zealous and discreet exercise
of your sacred calling, gaining the good-wil^ and
respect of all classes without distinction of creed, may
be (as we trust it will) for the benefit of the Church
with which you are immediately connected, for the
Church generally, and for yourself particularly, never-
theless the present loss is ours, and we can not but
express our sense of it. We part with you, therefore,
as one parts with a friend.

" Be assured you carry with you our best wishes
for your future welfare and happiness, and that in
your new sphere of usefulness you may be blessed
with abundant success as a faithful husbandman in
the Lord's vineyard.

" We cannot close this address without expressing
our deep sense of the obligation the citizens of Red
River Settlement are under to you for the patriotic
course taken by you during the troubles of 1869 and
70, in this country.

" In con^.ection with this address we beg to present
you with the accompanying purse as a small testi-
monial of our respect and esteem.

" Sif;ned on behalf of the citizens of Winnipeg,

"E. B. Wood,

" Chairman of Committeey Qiief Justice of Manitoba.

" To Rev. Geo. Young,

•' Wesleyan Methodist Minister.
" Winnipeg, Man., 26th May, 1876."

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320

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

" To Rev. George Young, Pastor of Grace Churchy
Winnipeg :

" Sir, — Remembering your connection with the
events of the Red River rebellion ; willingly giving
your only son to aid those who strove to main-
tain law and order and to defend the flag of their
country ; your ministering carp of those who lan-
guished in prison, and of him who was put to a cruel
death ; and the fearless discharge of your duties at
all times at great personal risk : — those who were
witnesses of your conduct and the recipients of your
ministrations have thought it well to offer you a
slight testimonial on the occasion of your departure
from among us.

" A meeting of the prisoners of 1869-70 have ac-
cordingly instructed us tc express to you their high
appreciation of your coniuct as a minister of the
Gospel and a patriotic man during these trying times ;
to tender their thanks for your zealous, kindly and
sympathizing attention to them while in prison ; and
to say to you that, among the many who are now
publicly testifying their appreciation of the services
you have rendered this country, there are none who
more deeply regret your departure, or who will longer
hold you in grateful remembrance.

" John Schultz, Chairman.
" James Stewart, Secretary.

" Winnipeg, Man, 25th May, 1876."

Our return to the work in Ontario was facilitated
and made all the more pleasant by the fact that two
important charges, which I had previously ministered
to, intimated, as soon as they knew of my purpose,
that their "gates were ajar" for our re-entrance.
A sense of obligation to the officiary and friends of

Church,

vith the
y giving
bo main-

of their
vho lan-
o a cruel
iuties at
'^ho were

of your
3r you a
eparture

have ac-
leir high
jr of the
3g times ;
idly and

on; and
are now

services
one who
ill longer

rman.
'etary.

cilitated
that two
inistered
purpose,
mtrance.
'lends of

RETURNING TO ONTARIO.

321

the Richmond Street Church, in view of their exceed-
ing liberality in the support of the little Red River
mission, and the encouraging kindness which they
had shown by word and deed through the eight years,
influenced me, not a little, in my decision in favor of
their "call" should the Conference approve. Our out-
going from Winnipeg at that date, as may be
imagined, was in striking contrast with our ingoing
in 1868. Numerous kind friends accompanied us to
the steamer, prayerfully asking for us all needful
guidance, protection and blessing for coming days.
Our route was by steamer to " Fisher's Landing " on
the Red Lake River, thance by cars to St. Paul,
Chicago, Detroit and Toronto, where a deputation was
waiting our arrival at the depot, and we were con-
ducted to the pleasant home of my faithful friend,
the late H. E. Clarke, M.RP., where we were most
kindly entertained until the parsonage was ready for
our occupancy. Pursuant to the request from the
Official Board of Richmond Street Church, the Con-
ference appointed me to that charge, and to the
Chairmanship of the Toronto District, in June, 1876.

Very noticeable changes had taken place both in
the arrangements of the building and in the congre-
gation since I left the charge in 1868. The order of
things in the interior of the church had been, at a
heavy outlay, so modernized as to involve a complete
reversal of pulpit and pews — the former removed from
the front to the rear end of the auditorium, while
the south end of the all-around gallery had been cut
down to make room for the pulpit and platform, and

322

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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the pews changed to face the pulpit in its altered posi-
tion. Several other changes had been made in order
to rejuvenate the old, out-of-fashion structure, and
make it attractive as far as practicable. I do not
think the expenditure was warranted. It did not
arrest the manifest down-town tendencies of the
locality, nor diminish the absorbing power of the great
central and in every way attractive Metropolitan
Church, then at its very best in its newness, and by
reason of its popular ministry and choir, and the social
status of its leading officials and members. It was
not at all marvellous, therefore, that the crowded con-
gregations of the old church of 1850, 1864 and on to
1870 were not there in 1876. Families by the dozen
and hearers by tkc scovc had transferred themselves
to the newest and most magnificent church home in
the city.

The depletion of the Richmond Street Church con-
gregation did not result from any failure of the Con-
ference to send to the charge ministers whose abilities
and faithfulness were most likely to prevent such a
result.

The Rev. T. W. Jeffrey, who was my immediate
predecessor, was by no means an easy man to follow.
He was a gifted brother, and though somewhat pecu-
liar in his style and eccentric in his manner, with
views on many profound subjects that were somewhat
startling to his hearers — yet in his best moods he
was a really brilliant and attractive, as well as impres-
sive preacher. He was, as a pastor, a general favorite
and especially with the young people, to whom his

h',

RETURNING TO ONTARIO.

323

red posi-
in order
ire, and
'. do not
did not

of the
ihe great
•opolitan
, and by
he social

It was
ded con-
,nd on to
he dozen
emselves
home in

rch con-
the Con-
abilities
) such a

imediate
3 follow,
at pecu-
ler, with
)mewhat
loods he
impres-
favorite
horn his

influence was stimulative and his addresses inspiring,
even when, through no fault of his, they failed to
instruct. Mrs. Jeffrey was a great help to her hus
band in his pastoral work, and no one can overestimate
the value, to him and his charges, of her holy life and
counsels and prayers. Though afflicted for years with
a distressing ailment, yet to her and to the Church
death came suddenly at length. While her husband
was engaged in his Sabbath morning service in the
sanctuary, she was released, and doubtless through the
ministry of holy angels she entered the upper
sanctuary and engaged in the " nobler worship there "
ere he returned.

The hour of Brother Jeffrey's return to God came
several years later. After languishing for months from
an incurable heart-ailment ending in dropsy and disso-
lution, he also received the summons on a Sabbath —
and while his congregation were worshipping in the
Berkeley Street Church at the evening service. With
only his little daughter and a domestic in the house,
he passed out of the " earthly tabernacle " to enter
the " house not made with hands." " Blessed are
the dead which die in the Lord."

To be associated again in Christian fellowship
and service with so many whom I had ministered
to and worked with on my former term in this
charge, was to me a source of much enjoyment, but it
was only by our united and persistent efforts in
Sabbath-school and pastoral work and evangelistic
services that we succeeded in holding our own from
quarter to quarter. And no pastor ever enjoyed a

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MANITOBA MEMORIES.

heartier co-operation from his officiary and member-
ship than I did. The energy, wisdom, and faith of
Mr. Pearson, our popular Sabbath-school superin-
tendent, so guarded and guided the interests of the
school as to secure an advancement that, under
the circumstances, was really marvellous; while as
leader of the largest society class he was equally suc-
cessful. Mr. H. E. Clarke, afterwards M.P.P., was one
of the most instructive Bible-class teachers as well
as the best Recording Steward I have ever known.

These earnest and gifted brethren, in association
with Rev. Dr. Withrow, J. J. Withrow, H. Walton,
Richard Clarke, and many others, stood by us nobly
even while the absorption process was going steadily
on. The result, by the Divine blessing, was a slight
increase, during our first year, in membership and
connexional funds.

At the Conference of June, 1877, my brethren did
me the unearned honor of appointing me to the
presidential office, thereby assigning me responsibili-
ties which hitherto I had not been called to sustain
In this, I take it, they had respect, not so much to
any special fitness for the position, as to my eight
years' service in the mission field. In their generosity,
by a proportionate assessment of their charges, they
provided for the support of an assistant for the year,
in order that I might be able to visit throughout the
Conference as circumstances might require, and assist
by sermons and addresses in missionary and other
anniversaries. Their selection of my assistant was
a very wise one and in every respect acceptable to the

UETtJRNiNG TO ONTARIO.

325

lember-
faith of
juperin-
s of the
, under
^hile as
lly suc-
waa one
as well
lown.
lociation
Walton,
s nobly
steadily
a slight
hip and

ren did
J to the
onsibili-
sustain
nuch to
ly eight
lerosity,
;es, they
le year,
lout the
id assist
id other
ant was
le to the

church as well as helpful to myself. The Rev. Dr.
Wallace, now of Victoria University, proved himself to
be the right man for the position. His ordination, as
ordered by the Conference, took place in our church
early in the year. His rapid progress in ministerial
service and professional work in the University have
given him a prominent place in the minis cry as well as
in the affections of the many students who have had
the good fortune to attend his classes. At the end of
my term of office I was glad to be released of all
presidential responsibilities and to welcome to the
chair as my successor the Rev. E. B. Harper, D.D.

My third year, which was really my fifth in the
pastorate of this church, was decidedly one of much
hard work, for Brother Wallace was no longer my
assistant, and the full measure of pulpit and pastoral
duties fell to my lot. But notwithstanding the predic-
tions of a few, ever ready to act the part of alarmists,
and to declare that this old " down town " church
was on the "down grade," at the summing up at
the end of the year our membership and finances
showed that the work had been well sustained. The
Conference of 1879 appointed the Rev. I. Tovell as
my successor, and I was placed in charge of the
Berkeley Street Church.

Ere my term in Richmond Street closed, the follow-
ing notice appeared in the New York Christian
Advocate, at whose instance I never knew :

" Cornell College, Iowa, conferred the degree of
Doctor of Divinity on Rev. George Young, President
of the Toronto Conference of the Methodist Church

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MANITOBA MEMORitS.

of Canada. Dr. Young has for thirty-six years
proved himself a man of unsullied character and
worthy scholarship. For eight years the great
mission work in Manitoba flourislied under his super-
intendence, while as President of this honored Con-
ference he has secured to himself a lasting hold on
the affections of his brethren."

This was an honor to which I have never felt
myself on any imaginable account entitled.

The Official Meeting of the Richmond Street Church
I was leaving entered upon its records the following
resolution, which was forwarded to me in due course:

"At the last Official IJeeting of the Richmond
Street Methodist Church, the following resolution
was unanimously adopted : * That in view of the near
approach of the time when our pastor, Rev. Dr.
Young, w^ill by the disciplinary arrangements of our
Church be removed from us to some other field of
labor, we, the members of the Official Board, desire
to record our high appreciation of his unvarying
deportment as a Christian gentleman, his earnest and
efficient ministrations, and wise government of the
affairs of the Church, and would hereby assure him
and his estimable partner of our warmest love and
esteem, and of our earnest prayers that they may
have both temporal and spiritual prosperity, and that
the Divine blessing may rest upon their efforts
wherever their lot may be cast.' "

My term of service in the Berkeley Street Church
terminated with the first half of 1871). As the result
of a great deal of house to house visiting as well as
earnest pulpit work, and tlie co-operation of the
church, a gratifying increase in the congregation and
class services was manifest, and the prospect for a

t*'

iiifi

X years
cter and
le great
is super-
•ed Con-
hold on

3ver felt

b Church
ollowing
3 course:

ichmond
^solution
the near
^ev. Dr.
i of our
field of
\, desire
Lvarying
lest and
b of the
ure him
ove and
ey may
md that
efforts

Church
le result
well as
of the
ion and
it for a

RtiTtTRNlNG TO ONTARIO.

327

successful year seemed ver^ encouraging; but just
then " a Macedonian cry " was heard at the Mission
Rooms. A considerable number of our people had
established themselves in business in a small village
on the boundary between Minnesota and Manitoba,
about seventy miles south of Winnipeg. At that d ^te
a new line of railway, from St. Vincent to Winnipeg*
had just been opened, and as several small villages
were springing up along the line, and many new
settlements were being formed in the section of
which Emerson was seemingly a promising centre,
the urgent request of our friends for the immediate
opening of a mission in that locality seemed but
reasonable, and the decision of the Board accorded
therewith.

As in 1868, I offered my services, and in a very
short time, being relieved of my responsibilities both in
the Berkeley Street Church and the Toronto District,
and my successors duly appointed, we made ready
for our journey to what seemed in that booming
time a most inviting field.

The ministers of the Toronto District assembled
immediately after my leaving and passed the follow-
ing resolution, which reached me in due course :

" Moved by Dr. Sutherland, seconded by Dr. Ryer-
son. That this meeting hereby records its sincere
appreciation of the fidelity and efficiency with wliich
the Rev. G. Young, D.D., has discharged the duties of
his office as Chairman while on this J)istrict, and that
whilst rc'gretting his departure, we do earnestly pray
that his return to the Province of Manitoba may be
signally owned of God for good." Carried unan-
imously.

i 1

{*;■ •

CHAPTER XXI.

I .-

MY SECOND APPOINTMENT TO MISSION
WORK IN MANITOBA.

The reason for that appointment, and the circum-
stances under which it was made, are given in the
preceding chapter.

The winter of 1879-'80 in the North-West was
very much more severe in its cold and wind-storms
than were any I had hitherto experienced in the
country ; so that the occupants of cheaply built and
unplastered frame dwellings, and especially travellers
and unhoused animals, suffered greatly. And then
each cold snap seemed but the precursor of a relent-
less blizzard, which rendered travelling over trackless,
houseless and treeless prairies exceedingly hazard-
ous. Of this my son, Captain G. H. Young, had
ample proof. While engaged in Customs duties along
the United States boundary between Wood Mountain
and the Rockies, and especially while crossing the
prairies from Wood Mountain to Fort Qu'Appelle, a
distance of tv/o hundred miles, in the coldest and
stormiest season of that severe winter, he with two
or three assistants experienced a notable escape from
death by freezing. The snow was deep, and in the
ravines badly drifted, and fuel hard to find, while

MY SECOND APPOINTMENT TO MANITOBA. 329

SION

circum-
Q in the

^est was
d-storms
I in the
uilt and
avellera
nd then

relent-
rackless,
hazaid-
ng, had
es along
ountain
ling the
>pelle, a
est and
ith two
)e from

in the
while

their only shelter was a tent. The great marvel is
that they did not all perish during the same intensely
cold night when seven or eight of their hardy ponies
were frozen to death. As a last resort, when nearly
helpless from the cold and want of fuel and proper
food, but fortunately when near their destination,
they were compelled to make fuel of their sled and
to pack the few necessaries of life still remaining on
their well-nigh exhausted ponies, and in this plight
they reached a settlement where their wants were
supplied. To us it was a time of intense solicitude,
for while we had reason to fear peril and suffering,
we could afford them no assistance, nor for many
weeks get any tidings concerning them. As may be
imagined, it was with special thanksgiving that we
received a telegram from Portage la Prairie announc-
ing their arrival in the settlement. The good hand
of God was upan them, and upon us, for good.

On our arrival at Emerson on the 19th of Decem-
ber, 1879, a small, poorly-furnished hall was rented
as a place of worship pro tern.

As soon as practicable the trustees secured a fine
large lot in a desirable locality as a site for a parson-
age and church. There were on the lot two small
buildings intended for dwellings, which, being joined
together, formed for us a parsonage sufficiently large
for our requirements, and thus a mission home was
very quickly made ready for our occupancy.

After a brief delay a clieap, rough, unplastered
building was erected to be our " house of prayer," and
henceforth known as " The Tabernacle." From the

330

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

I '

) I f

I t;

date of its 'opening our congregations increased very
considerably. The Trustees of Grace Church, Winni-
peg, generously donated to me personally the bell
which had already become somewhat historic, and
which they did not require, as the first Grace Church
had given place to the Wesley Hall block. The good
old bell was duly loaned by me to the Board in
Emerson for use until such time as required else-
where. For the last seventeen years the loan has
been continued, but I think the time has now fully
come when it is more fitting that it should be re-
turned to Winnipeg to become a portion of the equip-
ment of Wesley College, where I trust it may long be
regarded as a suggestive memento of former times.

I quote from an Emerson paper the following in-
teresting history of the Tabernacle bell :

" In our last issue we were slightly in error in
stating that the Trust Board of Grace Church, Win-
nipeg, had donated the bell, which had been used in
their church until quite recently, to the Trust Board
of the Methodist Church of Canada in Emerson.
The gift was made to the Rev. Dr. Young, pastor of
the Tabernacle, to be used in any way he might
direct, but still to remain his property. As he is
now loaning it to his congregation in Emerson, it is
presumable that it will do service here for a consider-
able term. The bell was cast in Troy, N.Y., in 1869,
in fulfilment of an order from the Sabbath-school in
Oshawa, of which the Hon. W. H. Gibbs was super-
intendent, and it bears an inscription to that effect.
At the suggestion of John Macdonald, Esq., of Toronto,
Mr. Gibbs and his Sabbath -school made this appro-
priate gift *To the first Methodist Church in Red

bsed very
h, Winni-
the bell
oric, and
e Church
The good
Board in
red else-
loan has
low fully
Id be re-
le equip-
/ long be
times,
wing in-

error in
ch, Win-
used in
st Board
Emerson.
Dastor of
e might
s he is
jon, it is
onsider-
in 1869,
ichool in
3 super-
*t effect.
Toronto,
J appro-
in Red

MV SECOND APPOINTMENT TO MANITOBA.

S31

River country,' not then a portion of the Dominion.
Its weight is about two hundred and fifty pounds, it
is artistic in its appearance, and has a clear, musical
ringing tone which all will admire. In 1869 it was
freighted out from St. Cloud, then th« terminus of
railroad communication, in this direction, on an ox
cart. For the first two or three years it was lung
for service chiefly by the missionary, Dr. Young, who
discharged the duties of pastor and sexton at the
same time, and never did he ring it more heartily and
energetically, we are told, than on the morning when
Colonel Wolseley and the troops passed through
the village and disturbed Kiel and his tatterdemalion
army in Fort Garry. That day has long since passed
away, but those who were here during that nonde-
script reign are not likely to forget the unpleasant
experiences which were theirs. All will feel that
the Board of Trustees did a very nice thing in a most
appropriate way when they unanimously passed the
resolution, and directed their Secretary to prepare
the letter, which we have been permitted to subjoin :

" Winnipeg, April 15, 1881.

" Rev. Gso. Young, D.D., Emerson, Man. :

" Rb:verend and Dear Sir, — It is my pleasing
duty as Secretary of the Board of Trustees of Grace
Church to inform you that, at a meeting of that
Board, a resolution was unanimously adopted that,
in recognition of your valuable services in times past
in connection with our church in Winnipeg, there
should be presented to you the bell and belfry of old
Grace Church, to be used in whatever place you may
desire. We are now only commencing to realize the
extent of those services not only as a pastor but as
one who had the material interests of the church in
view. To your foresight and judgment we are much

ilit

i: ; ! ;;
V'i.l \

! i; I]

i H

I !

'If'

332

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

indebted for the valuable property now owned by
the church in this city.

" We trust you will accept this gift, which, although
of little intrinsic value, will be a souvenir to you of
the incidents of the eventful years during which you
took so prominent a part in the history of our young
Province. I am also instructed to express to you the
sorrow of the members of the Board at your great
bereavement, and to assure you that you have their
deepest sympathy. I am, dear sir, respectfully yours,

" J. S. iiKiNS, Secretary of Board."

Our little village soon became the head of a Circuit
embracing several small neighborhoods adjacent
thereto. One, more remote than the others, was a
settlement of Prince Edward Islanders in Minnesota,
U. S., who were entirely destitute of the means of
grace. Years after, while f ttending missionary anni-
versary services on the Island, I met with their near
relatives and received hearty thanks for having
visited and ministered to their distant friends in
advance of any missionary from any Church in their
adopted country. Dominion City, so called, where I
established week -evening services at first, soon became
the head of a pleasant mission, and is now, I judge,
a self-supporting charge. West Lynne, at the first
an exceedingly promising village just across the
Assiniboine from Emerson, became a Sabbath
appointment, where we built a small but neat place
of worship, and enjoyed a season of revival. In the
history of this place we met with a sore disappoint-
ment. Its booming days were of brief continuance,
and were followed by a disastrous collapse. Inun-

MY SECOND APPOINTMENT TO MANITOBA.

333

owned by

, although
to you of
rvhich you
3ur young
10 you the
our great
lave their
illy yours,

Board."

a Circuit

adjacent

)YS, was a

linnesota»

means of

ary anni-

}heir near

r having

riends in

1 in their

where I

n became

I judge,

the first

pross the

Sabbath

eat place

In the

iappoint-

tinuance,

Inun-

dated and desolated by the great overflow of the
river in 1882, its population became so utterly dis-
couraged (fearing subsequent liability to similar
calamities), that they very generally moved away
from scenes which must continually remind them of
their disappointment and loss, and established homes
in more promising localities. The flood was a great
calamity to Emerson and its surroundings in that
section of the country. The rushing waters bore
with them immense masses of ice which, though
broken, remained quite firm, and which, as they
crushed over the banks of the river, spee^Uly swept
away the costly bridges which had been but recently
erected, and with them the storehouses and landings
belonging to the merchants and forwarders of the
town. The streets, especially in the lower portions of
the place, were flooded to the depth of eight or ten feet»
necessitating a hasty removal of the goods in the stores
and of the families as well, to the higher stories or to
higher grounds until the flood should subside. A
steamer unloaded its freight of lumber, etc., in one of
the principal streets, while sidewalks and crossings
were generally destroyed. Making "a virtue of neces-
sity," each householder became a boat c vvner in very
quick time. Marketing had to be done by means of
boats. I found it necc^ssary to learn to manage my
little craft in order to visit the butcher and baker and
store, or even the Tabernacle. Fortunately our little
parsonage was built on a sliglit elevation, so that
the rising water simply filled the cellar and reached
within an inch of the floor of the house before it

Ir •;

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te-

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i :

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•ri

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; ' ■
1

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334

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

began to abate. Union services were held in the
Baptist Church, which stood on higher ground, while
our Tabernacle, with four or live feet of water cover-
ing the floor, might have served for the immersing of
the people had it been so required.

Great as was this calamity to us in 1882, the
following extract will show that the Red River
settlements in earlier days had suffered greater losses
from the same cause :

" In this connection we might mention the follow-
ing extracts from an old diary, which were made some
time ago by Mr. A. McDermot. In 1826 the flood
began early in May. May 14th, water came into the
upper church (St. John's). The people removed to
Snake Indian Hills (Stony Mountain), where they
remained until June 12th. Only three houses were
left standing in the settlement. 1852, the ice broke
on the 28th April. The winter had been fine until
the end of February, and there had been much snow
during March. May 2nd, water rising; people alarm-
ed ; snow and sleet. May 9th, water at the corner
of the churchyard, St. John's. May 12th, house still
dry; water entering hall. May 19th, water at a
stand-still. Highest point reached, 40 inches in the
bishop's house. May 21st, water receding. May
26th, water down to 20 inches in the bishop's house.
June 1st, flood abated in the upper church; weather
very hot. Tlie church wiis closed altogether five
weeks. The people went out to Little Stony Moun-
tain, and St. James (Silver Heights), the latter
locality being dry, as well as the former."

I deeply regret that at the time of this writing
(April, 1897), Emerson is reported as again inundated
by the overflow of the Red River,

MY SECOND APPOINTMENT TO MANITOBA. 335

d in the
nd, while
:er cover-
lersing of

L882, the
3d River

it: losses

le follow-

lade some

the flood

I into the

[noved to

ere they

ises were

ce broke

ine until

ich snow

le alarm -

le corner

ouse still

ter at a

s in the

:• May

s house.

weather

her five

Y Moun-

e latter

writing
lundated

From these representations it will be seen that the
church which still exists in Emerson was founded, by
the blessing of God, in trying times and amid mani-
fold discouragements. And yet I have to refer to a
still darker shadow which was projected across my
pathway while I was j>rosecuting the work the
Church had given me to do. In less than a year
after we entered our little parsonage already referred
to, the wife of my youth, who for thirty-two years
had been my wise counsellor and most devoted and
efficient helper in the service of the Church, after a
brief and distressing illness, was stricken out of the
life that now is, and advanced to an infinitely higher
life among the immortals. The following kindly
in memoriam references by Dr. "V jod, and an obit-
uary notice, both of which appeared in the Guardian
shortly after her decease, will not, I trust, by any, be
deemed inappropriate in this connection :

From the Methodist Mission Rooms, for the " Christian

Guardian^

" To identify and perpetuate the memory of Sister
Young 'as a servant of the Church,' in carrying on the
work assigned to the Methodist Missionary Society,
we place her obituary in the columns assigned to
missionary intelligence. She was the first of our
sisters to accompany her husband to Fort Garry, now
the City of Winnipeg, and hers is the first grave that
has been opened to receive all that was mortal of a
faithful and devoted laborer in the Lord's vineyard.
Forty years have passed since the first Wesleyan
missionaries began their missions among the Indians
some three hundred miles north of Dr. Young's first

336

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

h' ;.

"I"
li

I; I ''

:;l

1 ' it

I ^^

j:l , i

il' -

^til

pip- 1

station ; of these laborers Mr. and Mrs. James Evans,
Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Hurlburt, and Mrs. T^rooking
have gone to rest ; but Mrs. Young belongs to the
foundation of a colony, and with it the establishment
of the Methodist ChurcL at the entrance of a magni-
ficent country containing all the elements for national
greatness and homes for millions. Called by the
(yhurch, she willingly gave up her happy associations

THE LATE MRS. (DR.) YOUNG.

in Ontario, and though unaccustomed to the rough
and exposed travel attendant upon camp life, cheer-
fully contended with its inconveniences, blending her
energies and knowledge of domestic wants to promote
the comfort of her fellow-travellers, The first two
or three years at Fort Garry were accompanied by
many trials; but before leaving that newly-formed
mission she ha,d to rejoice in the success attendant
upon her husband's ministry, having succeeded in the
erection of a sanctuary, a mission house, and the

MY SECOND APPOINTMENT TO MANITOBA.

337

!S Evans,
Brooking
js to the
(lishment
I masjni-
' national
bv the

lociations

He rough
cheer-
ding her
promote
irst two
^nied by
-formed
itendant
d in the
and the

ingathering of a living Church, to the formation of
which she consecrated her time and influence.

"Our esteemed and lamented sister was distin-
guished for her diligence, love of order, and punc-
tuality, courteous hospitality, and an intelligent
spiritual-mindedness. She both pointed to heaven
by her instructions, and led the way by her example.
Nor has she been alone in this work ; for verily we
think too little of Methodist ministers' wives, both at
home and abroad, who, by their sacrifices and efforts
contribute largely to their husbands' success, and the
prosperity of the varied institutions of the Church.
We need more of the spirit and remembrance of St.
Paul, as shown in his last chapter to the Romans.'

THE OBITUARY.

Mary Alsy Homes, the beloved wife of the writer,
was born October, A.D. 1822, and entered into rest on
the 2nd day of December, 1880. Hers was a godly
ancestry. Her father, the late Rev. Ninian Holmes,
was one of the pioneer Methodist missionaries who did
such good service for their blessed Master in the wilds
of Canada during the period of its early settlement,
and a worthy associate of the apostolic Dr. Nathan
Bangs, whose achievements in various fields of Chris-
tian usefulness the Methodists of Canada and of the
United States will never forget. Two events of untold
importance to the subject of this notice, and to many
others, transpired during her childhood-days, viz., the
sudden death of her saintly father and her own con-
version to God. The genuineness of that conversion
and the practicability of a true and enduring Christi-
anity in asso' ' ition with the Avell-known character^
22

11 ■

*" \

J Pi \\

".''sWi

.illlr I,

I '■■ i

338

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

istics of early youth, were fully demonstrated by her
subsequent life. Realizing continually that she was
Christ's, she steadily aimed at unreserved consecra-
tion to His service, sought and experienced the cleans-
ing and healing which the " precious blood " only can
accomplish, and daily studied and planned to do good
from love to the world's Redeemer. Her experience
in the deep things of the faith and inner life of the
Christian as related by her in love-feasts, class and
fellowship meetings, led many to feel that she had
been much with Jesus, and had received rich baptism
from His hand. She possessed a large measure of the
true missionary spirit. And all that she did and
endured during the eight years from 1868 to 1876,
and especially in March, 1870, in connection with the
opening and organization of the Methodist missions
in the Red River country, can never be made known
to the Church whose interests she so earnestly strove
to promote. Yet when the way opened in December,
1879, for a return to the mission work in Manitoba,
she rejoiced exceedingly, for she desired most to work
where workers were most needed. In her little book
for " Memos " the following record appears, which was
made on the train which bore her towards her new
field of labor: " December 19th, 1879. Left Toronto
to-day for Emerson, to help commence a work for the
blessed Master. Lord help us." Words which indi-
cate her life aim — which was " to help " in every good
word and work to the extent of her ability. Quebec,
Ontario and Manitoba can testify that she was indeed
a very efficient helper. While she saw nothing that was

ed by her

it she was

consecra-

}he cleans-

" only can

bo do good

3xperience

life of the

class and

t she had

h baptism

mre of the

} did and

3 to 1876,

1 with the

missions

de known

tly strove

December,

Manitoba,

jt to work

ittle book

vhich Was

her new

Toronto

•k for the

lich indi-

r^ery good

Quebec,

as indeed

that was

MY SECOND APPOINTMENT TO MANITOBA. 339

attractive in the merely frivolous, whether in society
or amusements or literature, she specially delighted
in the study of the Word, in the ordinances of God's
house, in close communion with God, in the society of
the godly, and in energetic action for the glory of
Christ and the salvation of souls. In fact, her ruling
passion was to work for the salvation of souls ; and
this feeling seemed to deepen and become intensified
as her years increased, and even when death drew
near, for when told of the fears of her medical adviser
she promptly expressed her belief that " God had
some more work for her to do here." And so he had,
but it was to be accomplished by means of her peace-
ful and confident death, rather than by her loving,
earnest entreaties and prayers. Her health had been
uniformly good since her return to this country until
within a few days of her decease, when the disease
which struck her down so quickly (pleurisy) seemed
to fasten upon her at the outset with a death-grip
which was never relaxed for a moment until the
silver cord was loosed and the golden bowl broken.
When asked if the intimation that she was nearing
the world of spirits startled her, she replied instantly,
" Certainly not." " Have you any fear ? " " Not in
the least," was the prompt response. " Is Jesus pre-
sent with you in your great suffering ? " " Oh, yes,
He is very near to me all the time," was the comfort-
ing answer. After such a life of trust and consecra-
tion, and with such a testimony borne within a few
minutes of her departure, what more could have been
reasonably required ? Our son, having arrived from

^ ;*!

; I'

:^ i j
f >

1 1

ife'

340

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

Winnipeg, was recognized at once, to our great joy,
and having looked her love and blessing, for she could
do no more, she rested her weary head on the pillow
gently and "was not, for God took her." As we
bowed in that death chamber, amid tears and sobs,
and asked the Father of spirits to minister an
entrance abundantly to her dear departing spirit
into the celestial city, we all felt that all of heaven, at
least, was not very remote.

It is a noteworthy fact that a considerable num-
ber of young persons, for whose conversion she had
earnestly labored and prayed, many of them members
of her Bible class, have been led to accept the Saviour's
grace since her decease, attributing their conversion
mainly to her influence and prayers and the Divine
blessing which attended the deeply-mysterious and
afflictive dispensation.

The following is a portion of a testimony borne to
Mrs. Young's useful life, as it was published in a
Winnipeg paper :

' Her consecrated life and untiring endeavors in
the Church were signally instrumental in gathei ^*ng
many into the fold of the Good Shepherd. None
made greater sacrifices in the interests of the Meth-
odist Church in Manitoba than did she, and her deep
solicitude for the safety of her husband and son, dur-
ing the long weary months of the rebellion, in 1869
and 1870, will never be fully known."

And yet another of the little family circle of three
individuals who entered the parsonage home in 1880,
was called from suflfering to rust ere my third year iu

MY SECOND APPOINTMENT TO MANITOBA. ^4l

great joy,
she could
;he pillow
" As we
and sobs,
nister an
ing spirit
leaven, at

ible nuni-
1 she had
members
Saviour's
lonversion
tie Divine
rious and

T borne to
3hed in a

eavors in
gathei'ng
•d. None
ihe Meth-
her deep
son, dur-
i, in 1869

e of three
in 1880,
•d year iu

Emerson had ended. For nearly ten years Miss
Linton, formerly of Kingston, was closely associated
with Mrs. Young in household cares, and in earnest
Sabbath-school work. In the providence of God they
were not long separated, and their graves may be
seen in the same family plot in the cemetery near the
city of Winnipeg. Thus I alone remained of the
little circle so broken into by death.

At the close of my term in Emerson an exceedingly
well written address, accompanied by a beautiful
album containing the photos of many friends, was
presented me on my leaving for Ontario. The Con-
ference of 1882, yielding to my request, allowed me a
year without an appointment. It was my privilege
to accompany my friends, Rev. Dr. and Mrs. Douglas,
on a tour to the Maritime Provinces, in order to visit
the Nova Scotia and New Brunswick Conferences.
To me this was a season of special interest and enjoy-
ment. I had opportunities of addressing, from plat-
form and pulpit, large numbers whom I had not met
before, and of becoming acquainted with many of the
elect brotherhood of these two Conferences. Parting
with Dr. and Mrs. Douglas at St. John, N.B., I
went on to Prince Edwanl Island, where I also had
many opportunities of preaching and of associating
with the ministers and membership of our Church in
that pleasant and interesting country. During my
stay on the Island I took board for a time near the
sea-shore, not far from liustico, with a kind family
in whose house my eloquent brotlier of former years,
the Rev. Laehlan Taylor, D.D , " finiHhed his course "
and passed over into the great spirit world.

11 '''

1^,

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(

fill

^42

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

During the next few months, after voyaging in the
Gulf, staying for a little at Cacouna, and at Brant-
ford, I visited Chautauqua, and enjoyed the only
opportunity I ever had of hearing that prince of
preachers, Bishop Simpson, on the text, "The morning
stars sang together, and the sons of God shouted for
joy" — a wonderful sermon. In the autumn of 1882
I attended the General Conference in the city of
Hamilton. One of the many important decisions of
that. Conference was the organization of " The Mani-
toba and North- West Conference " and the appoint-
ment of a Superintendent of Missions for the North-
West, whose duty it should be to organize the Con-
ference in 1883 and act as its first President. The
selection of that official was relegated to the Board of
Missions, which was called to meet at once after the
close of the Conference. The next day I received
notice by a telegram of my appointment, and a request
to meet the Board as soon as practicable.

. ; . .■

jing in the
at Brant-

the only

prince of
e morning
[louted for
n of 1882
e city of
3cisions of
rhe Mani-
) appoint-
he North-

the Con-
ent. The
! Board of
! after the
. received

a request

CHAPTER XXII.

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT TO MISSION WORK
IN THE NORTH-WEST.

The Missionary Notices for October, 1882, issued
soon after the appointment was announced, and I
was duly "certificated" with the accustomed cordi-
ality of the General Secretary, contained the follow-
ing reference :

" The announcement that the Rev. Dr. Young has
been chosen to fill the arduous and responsible post of
Superintendent of Missions in the North- West, will,
we are sure, be received with lively satisfaction by
the whole Church. Dr. Young's long experience in
that country will be of immense service in the work
to which he is now called, while his whole record will
carry the fullest confidence that the task of laying
foundations will be conducted alike with prudence and
vigor. Immediately after receiving his appointment,
Dr. Young started for Manitoba, where he will spend
the present month in the work assigned him. He
will then return eastward, and spend some time in
missionary anniversaries, and in promoting the
interests of the Church and Parsonage Aid Fund.
We need not bespeak for liim a cordial reception ; he
is sure to get that wherever he goes."

In accordance with this notice my appointment
was made on the 29th of September. On the 2nd of

344

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

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October I started on my journey to the North- West
to engage in the work assigned me. Reaching
Winnipeg, I proceeded at once to visit certain points
which required early attention. Regina, now the
capital of the North- West Territories, but then only
six weeks old, belonged to that class. At that date
it was represented as containing eight hotels, eighteen
stores, two blacksmith's shops, one saddler's shop, two
livery stables, two tin shops, two bmndries, three
billiard halls, two bakeries, one drug store, one
jeweller's shop, two doctors, six lawyers, and four
lumber yards, and a population of between eight and
nine hundred souls.

On returning to Winnipeg an interviewer from the
office of the F'^ee Press drew from me such replies as
enabled him to produce the following report :

" REV. DR. young's WESTERN TOUR.

" Rev. Dr. Young, Superintendent of Missions,
Methodist Church of Canada, arrived here on Tuesday
evening from the west, after having paid his first
official visit to various points in this Province and the
North-West Territories. He left Winnipeg on Satur-
day, 7th inst., and arrived at Millford by way of
Brandon the same evening. The following morning
he conducted the services in connection with the
opening of a new church at Millford, and in the after-
noon returned to Brandon, where he preached that
evening. He found the church at Brandon in a
rtourishing state. The congregation at the evening
service numbered some five hundred people, and about
filiod the church. An enlargement of the building is
projected, to come into effect next spring.

" Leaving Brandon on Tuesday, 10th inst., Dr.

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT TO THE NORTH-WEST. 345

rth-West
Reaching
,in points
now the
hen only
ihat date
eighteen
jhop, two
es, three
iore, one
ind four
ight and

from the
•eplies as

Missions,

Tuesday

his first

and the

1 Satur-

w^ay of

[Homing

rith the

le af ter-

led that

3n in a

evening

id about

Iding is

St., Dr.

Young continued on his journey westward and reached
Regina on Wednesday. On Friday he went, in
company with Rev. Mr. Hewitt, of Regina, to Moose
Jaw Creek, and then on to Old Wives' Lake. The
regular passenger trains running only as far as
Regina, it was necessary to travel the remainder of
the distance, nearly a hundred miles, in a caboose
attached to a construction train, carrying rails, ties,
etc. The track was laid about eighteen miles beyond
Old Wives' Lake, but the latter point was the terminus,
so far as the construction train was concerned. Its
distance from Winnipeg is a little over 470 miles,

" Regina was found to be progressing very rapidly.
Several frame buildings were in course of erection, so
that henceforth the place is not likely to consist, as
during some time past, entirely of tents. There were
already in existence hotels and business places of
various kinds, and small buildings, for use as such,
were rapidly going up. The people might be said to
be in reality merely squatters who had taken posses-
sion in the expectation of being able to purchase as
soon as the land should come into the market, but
having no certainty as yet as to their ownership.

"On Sunday, loth instant, service was held by
Rev. Dr. Young twice at Regina, a large tent, capable
of accommodating two or three hundred people, being
used for the purpose. The congregation was estimated
to number about fifty. The circulation of a sub-
scription was commenced, with tlie object of pro-
viding for the erection of a place of worsliip. The
sum of S250 was subscribed, but it is expected tliat
this amount will be considerably increased. With
this result of local effort, together witli some assistance
from the Church Extension Fund, it is expected that
the tent, which has been in use during the summer,
will be replaced this fall by a place of worsliip more
suitable for winter occupancy."

t 11^ * '

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1

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346

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

On the 23rd of October, having visited seven or
eight of these recently occupied fields of missionary
effort and travelled 4,322 miles in twenty-four days,
I left Manitoba for the remote east, and reaching
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, on the 3rd of
November, I began the work assigned me by preach-
ing missionary sermons in that town on the day
following, and arranging for a series of meetings
during the week on several of the more important
charges in that very pleasant country. On the
following Sabbath I took full work in Windsor,
Nova Scotia; and thenceforward, in city, town,
or neighborhood, in both Nova Scotia and New
Brunswick, on Sabbath and week-day evenings, I
tried to fulfil my mission, until my campaign in the
Maritime Provinces ended on the 20th of December,
1882. During the first six weeks of the new year,
I was similarly engaged in various parts of Ontario,
but unfortunately, as the result of this overtaxing of
voice and strength and of undu'^ exposure, I was
compelled to cancel many other engagements, by a
sharp attack of bronchitis which shut me in for a
month, necessitating medical treatment as well as
absolute rest. Convalescing, however, I was enabled
to return in March to the North- West, and to take
up the line of work I had left in the preceding
October, and to visit many inviting openings bobh in
Manitoba and fhe adjoining territory, and preach and
render such other aid as opportunity afforded until
June, when I returned to Ontario in time for the
Toronto Conference at Peterboro', where I hoped to

seven or
lissionary
Pour days,

roaching
le 3rd of
y preach-
L the day
meetings
mportant

On the
Windsor,
y, town,
nd New
enings, I
^ in the
)ecember,
ew year,

Ontario,
baxing of
I was
its, by a
in for a

well as
} enabled

to take
receding

bobh in
each and
ed until

for the
loped to

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT TO THE NORTH-WEST. 347

secure more volunteers for earnest work in these
rapidly extending mission fields. On July 3rd I left,
via the lakes, for Winnipeg, in order to make such
arrangements as seemed needful prior to the assem-
bling of the brethren as ordered by the General
Conference, for the purpose of organizing an Annual
Conference for Manitoba and the North-West. The
proceedings of the Conference, which were full of
interest, were admirably reported for the Free Press,
but want of space wiU prevent me from giving more
than a few selection? from these reports:

"THE NEW CONFERENCE.

" The Manitoba and North- West Conference of the
Methodist Church of Canada met for organization
yesterday morning in Wesley Hall, Rev. George
Young, D.D., first President, taking the chair, in
accordance with the appointment of the General
Corference.

" The first hour, beginning at ten o'clock, was spent
in singing, reading of the Scripture and prayer. Rev.
S. D. Rice, D.D., President of the General Conference;
and Rev. Messrs. Halstead, Bristol, Betts, Hewitt and
Colpitts taking pp^rt.

"THE president's INAUGURAL ADDRESS.

" The prayer-meeting having closed, the President,
Rev. Dr. Young, delivered the following address :

" My dear brethren, we meet this hour under cir-
cumstances quite unique, and exceedingly interesting.
As a section of the Church in this land, we have
before us, in some respects, a new departure. We are
about to inaugurate a new eia in on- church work by
organizing an Annual Conference, thereby bringing

:':;il

348

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

the number up to beven, which will be further
increased very soon to nine or ten such Conferences
in our Dominion. In 1872 a Conference was held
near this spot, in the Grace Church of that period,
which was presided over by the late Dr. Punshon and
attended by Rev. Dr. Wood v^nd missionaries of that
time in the Nortl We •- bui while it involved con-
sultation and deci.s ^n;- ^^ many matters of impor-
tance, and was follo\\ '(■ by important results, yet it
did not involve organization.

" You are all aware that the General Conference of
last September authorized the organization of a Con-
ference at this date and in this place, for Manitoba
and the North-West, and also, whether wisely or un-
wisely, it is not for me to say, appointed the Super-
intendent of Missions in this country to preside and
to continue in the presidency for one year.

" Your first duty to-day will not be, therefore, as in
the ordinary Annual Conference, to elect a President,
but to proceed at once to the appointment of a
Secretary for the year before us. I need not remind
3"ou, brethren, that during our different sessions you
will be called upon to deliberate carefully and prayer-
fully upon a variety of questions, which have most
important practical bearings. The duty of outlining
work in the committee room, and of accepting or
rejecting or modifying the various reports and resolu-
tions that may be submitted, of adopting measures
for the sustenance of the connexional funds, for the
extension of our mission work, and for the promotion
of great educational interests, will demand much
prayerful consideration.

" We do not feel that we have fallen behind any of
the Churches in our efforts, during the last fifteen
years, to supply both the aborigines and the new
settlera with the ordinances^ and yet we have cause
for regret that more has not been done, and ought to

! further
nferences
was held
Lt period,
shon and
3 of that
Ived con-
>f impor-
ts, yet it

erence of
>f a Con-
Manitoba
y or un-
e Super-
side and

ore, as in
resident,
mt of a
i remind
ons you

prayer-
ive most
)utlining
pting or
i resolu-
aeasures

for the
omotion
d much

i any of
} fifteen
he new
e cause
ught to

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT TO THE NORTH-WEST. 349

feel the obligation pressing to still more earnest
endeavors. In order to reach the more remote settle-
ments as quickly as possible, it will be necessary for
us to imitate as closely as may be the early Methodist
itinerants of Ontario in perforrning frequent and long
journeys, and in visiting scattered settlers during the
week when it cannot be accomplished on Sabbaths.
Forty sermons in four weeks, with journeys of
hundreds of miles on the saddle, was no very uncom-
mon achievement in those days. Under er^ting
circumstances the Master requires a consecra*. oi. )f
all our energies. This Conference session wi^ do. b-
less b^ brief, and yet it may be to us all a ir;« 'ii» ^jible
and profitable season. Soon we shall separa ' , and
possibly not meet in Conference ^\gain. Let us,
therefore, strive togetlier in our prayiirs i c^ godly
councils, that we may go forth all the wiser and
holier for the privileges we now enjoy.

"ROLL OF CONFERENCE.

" At the conclusion of the President's address, th
roll of the Conference members was called, and Con
ference Secretary appointed, when the President then
introduced Rev. S. D. Rice, D.D., President of the
General Conference, who gave a brief address. He
explained that he found himself unexpectedly able to
be present after h'^ving written to the effect that he
could not come, owing to other duties. He spoke of
the peculiar interest which he felt in everything
connected with the North-West, and which was shared
by everyone who had anything to do with this
country. He regarded this as prophetic of what was
to be in this North-West prairie land. He had found
the eastern climate very trying, but felt himself
greatly invigorated on reaching the prairies again.
He had hardly supposed it possible that he would
look into the faces of so many that he did not know,

:: iJiiil

; 1 .

. 1

f '

i f

H-i : f

.1:1!

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350

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

He contrasted the number of ministers here with that
of the very few who were here three years ago when
he first arrived. He considered that the responsibili-
ties of the work here were such that they could
hardly be overestimated. Those who had been here
but a short time could form no conception of the
responsibilities and the glory to be associated with
laying the foundations of this country if rightly laid;
though those who had been here longer might some-
what appreciate them. These responsibilities were
such as belonged to no other part of the world that
he had seen or known, and they could only be looked
upon in the most serious light. He was very glad to
meet his brethren again, both those whom he knew
and those whom he did not know. (Laughter.)"

The report of the Committee on Statistics, as then
presented, and as compared with the statement made
by a similar committee at the Conference of 1896,
will indicate a wonderful progress realized during
those years.

" There are at present sixty-eight missions and cir-
cuits in connection with this Conference, of which
live are self-sustaining; forty-six missions to the
white settlers, and seventeen to the Indians. Our
missionaries traverse an area of 175,000 square miles,
containing two hundred and sixty-nine preaching-
stations where regular services are maintained, forty-
eight churches, thirty-two parsonages, and twelve
rented houses.

"The services are attended by thirteen thousand,
eight hundred and seventy-five hearers. There are
two thousand, eight hundred and eighty -three mem-
bers, and one thousand, seven hundred and sixty- seven
families in connection with our Church.

"For ministerial support there was raised last year

with that
igo when
ponsibili-
ey could
)een here
n of the
.ted with
htly laid;
jht some-
lies were
orld that
De looked
y glad to
he knew
er.)"

5, as then
ent made
of 1896,
during

and cir-
)f which
3 to the
IS. Our
Lre miles,
'eaching-
d, forty-
l twelve

housand,
here are
ee mem-
ty- seven

ast year

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT IN THE NORTH-WEST. 351

$13,085, which amount will be largely increased
during the current year. The society classes num-
ber eighty-two, the Sunday-schools sixty-eight, two
hundred and thirty-six officers and teachers, and not
less than three thousand scholars."

The following comparative statement, showing the
progress made since the Conference was organized,
will, I am sure, be most gratifying to all who have in
any way contributed to results so unspeakably
important :

1883. 1896.

Number of preaching-places 269 548

members 2,883 16,131

Sabbath-schools 68 245

Scholars 3,000 14,241

Paid by circuits for ministerial support . $13,085 $59,433

" " sustentation of College $7,030

♦' ♦» all purposes $170,731

On the last day of its sessions the members of the
C inference were favored with a visit and an address
from one of world-wide celebrity, who at that date
was giving a series of lectures in the city. The
following is a brief synopsis of the address :

A DISTINGUISHED VISITOR.

" Rev. Henry Ward Beecher at this stage of the
proceedings entered the room, accompanied by the
Rev. Mr. Stafford, who introduced him to the Presi-
dent of the Conference. The President welcomed the
reverend gentlema i in cordial terms, and introduced
him to the Confe ence, all the members rising and
loudly manifestir their applause.

1:'

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illl

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352

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

" Rev. Mr. Beecher said he perceived that most of
the assembly were young men, not having yet reached
the meridian of life. The fact brought back to him
reminiscences of his own early ministry, for he, too,
had been a pioneer preacher. He had labored in
Indiana when all the northern part of the State was
an Indian possession. He remembered to have ridden
over Illinois, and, looking upon the prairies without
stone, coal or wood, except a ribbon of forest along
the river, concluded that it would never be settled ;
that there might be a few farms along the river, but
that the great interior of the State would never be
settled. But the railroad had changed all that, and
now there were great and flourishing cities there. He
had received all his early inspirations for the ministry
in the mission-field, performing just such work as had
fallen to the most of his hearers, and he therefore
had sympathy for those who were beginning their
ministry, and for those of any age who were laying
foundations upon which other men would build when
they were gone. This was the most honorable work
of the whole Christian ministry — the original creative
work of going where no man had gone, of which Paul
had boasted. It was laying a foundation, the super-
structure of which they would see only when looking
out from Heaven's window, and it was the manliest
and most Christian work that man was called to. In
later life he had seen a great deal of work, both in
Europe and America, so that he might say the experi-
ence of his later years was as directly opposed to his
early experience as could be imagined. Yet he could
bear witness that he could be glad to go back again
to the ministry with which he had begun his work
among the poor, outlying districts, and suffer, if need
be, as he had dors, poverty and ill-health. One of
the most commanding words of Sacred Writ to him,
and one that ought to knock at the door of every

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT TO THE NORTH-WEST. 353

i most of
t reached
k to him
r he, too,
,bored in
5tate was
ve ridden
1 without
est along
e settled ;
river, but
never be
that, and
lere. He
! ministry
rk as had
therefore
ling their
pre laying
Liild when
ible work
d creative
hich Paul
he super-
n looking
manliest
d to. In
i, both in
le expen-
sed to his
he could
ick again
his work
r, if need
One of
it to him,
of every

man that had scanned the word of inspiration, was
this, ' To you it is given to suffer with Him.' There
were degrees of enjoyment that were never attained
by prosperity, that belonged to a magnanimous life,
and a self-sacrificing life. The depth, height, breadth
and length of the love of Christ was shown in His
suffering for the objects of His love. All love, deep
and eternal, was to be measured by wha,t one would
suffer for love's sake. He honored their vocation, he
might almost say he envied it. By-and-by, when
these scenes were over, and they were drawn by the
heart of God to stand around their beloved Saviour,
it would matter very little whether they labored on
the prairies of the North- West, the middle regions or
the populous cities. Their joy would be to see Christ
and find they were like Him, and to be eternally
satisfied. He thanked them for their greeting, and
trusted they would have more and more the joy of
bringing in the sheaves and reporting what the Lord
had done through their instrumentality. He looked
forward to the time when this Conference would
become so unwieldy that it would have to be divided.
The reverend gentleman was loudly applauded as he
resumed his seat."

In reporting the adjournment of the Conference of
1883, the Winnipeg Free Press made the following
appropriate reference to the occasion, which I have
much pleasu. ^ in reproducing :

"The meetii);^ of the North- Western Conference of
the Methodist Church of Canada, which has just
adjourned its first session in this city, marks a
momentous era in the religious history of the
Dominion. It also marks an important stage in the
progress of the North-West. Hitherto this section of
the Church has been under the supervision of the
23

354

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

f|li

\u\

Toronto Conference; but, having grown with the
country, it has attained sufficient importance to justify
the handing over of its interests into its own keeping.

'* The progress of development of the Methodist
Church in the North- West has been truly wonderful.
A great work has been already accomplished by it ;
and, so much having been done while its matin beams
are but just beginning to shine above the boundless
horizon of our great north-western prairies, what may
we not anticipate when its meridian glory shall have
been attained ? Forty years ago its labor of love was
begun among the aborigines of this country. In 1868
Rev. Dr. Young, now Superintendent of Missions and
first President of the first North-Western Conference,
arrived and laid the foundations of the prosperity
which the Church has since attained among the then
small, though now large and rapidly increasing white
population. There are at present about seventy
clergymen in connection with the Church in the
North- West, most of whom are young, vigorous men,
thoroughly alive to the importance of the interests
committed to their care, and anxious to promote them
to the full extent of their ability. With such an
army of workers, a great future is necessarily in store
for the Methodist Church in this country.

"This first session of the new Conference was
worthy of such a body. It was marked throughout
by the greatest unanimity and energy of action.
Business of the highest importance was transacted
with a promptitude and a freedom from petty dissen-
sions and bickerings which older bodies W(juld do well
to take a pattern from."

Tmmediatolv after tlie close of this interestinsf
season of co'/'-jrences, I visited l^iandon and also a
recently formed mission in tlie Souris country, in
charge of Brother Harrison. On Sabbath a round

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT TO THE NORTH-WEST. 355

ivith the
bo justify

keeping.
Methodist
onderful.
ed by it ;
bin beams
boundless
vhat may
ihall have
[ love was
In 1868
ssions and
onference,
prosperity
g the then
sing white
it seventy
ch in the
)rous men,
e interests
mote them
such an

y in store

rence was
iroughout
of action,
transacted
ty dissen-
ild do well

interesting
and also a
ountrv, in
h a round

trip was made of twenty miles, in a day more than
ordinarily warm, and because urged to do so, I
imprudently preached three times, and then on the
following evening attended and gave an address at a
tea-meeting, resulting, so far as I was concerned, in
an illness which would have proved more serious but
for the prompt and skilful treatment of my kind
friend, Dr. Flenung, of Brandon, who attended ms
night and day until I reached convalescence. I shall
never forget the distress I endured during the drive
from Souris to the comfortable home of Mr. and Mrs.
Sifton, where I was cared for in the kindest manner
until I recovered.

On the 29th of August following I reached Belle-
ville, where the General Conference assembled, at
which, after very able and prolonged debating, the
*• Union " was consunnnated. On the Sabbath I
enjoyed the privilege of hearing an excellent sermon
by my friend the Rev. Chancellor Nelles, the last I
was permitted to hear from him. In the evening of
the same day I preached in the Methodist Episcopal
Tabernacle. On the 26th of September I was again
on my way, via Chicago and St. Paul, to our great
Canadian North-West, reaching Winnipeg on the
29th. Sabbath, the 30th September, was a day of
special interest to Methodism in Winnipeg, inasmuch
as the new and costly and commodious Grace Church
No. 2 was then opened for worship. By request, I
preached at 11 am., and conducted the dedicatory
service. The Rev. Dr. Gordon (Presf)ytcrian) preached
at 3 p.m., and Dr. Statibrd, the pastor, gave an

™

■

wm ■■ '^

356

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

admirable discourse in the evening. The congrega-
tions were very large and the offerings liberal,
amounting to over $400. What a change in our
circumstances from the Sabbath in September, 1871,
when I preached the opening sermon in Grace Church
No. 1. On the 3rd of October I left for Medicine
Hat, stopping over at Brandon and Moose Jaw on
official duties.

^.m

1 '

1 i

SECOND " r.RA( E CHURCH.

The following extracts from my letters to the
Mission Rooms, reporting progress at various points,
will ]»e in order here :

EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS.

" Winnipeg, Oct. 24, 1883.

" I am glad to be able to report myself in good
health and (juite ready for any reiisonable amount
of work. . . . My visit to the western missions
was very satisfactory, to myself at least.

flll|i> i

MV THIRD APPOiNTME^+T Tf) tHE NORTH-WEST. 35?

congrega-
;s liberal,
;e in our
ber, 1871,
ce Church
Medicine
e Jaw on

rs to the
)us points.

24, 1883.

ir in good
>le amount
11 missions

'■ At Medicine Hat, where Brother Bridgman has
been less than three months, I opened a new church
24 X 40, and preached to good congregations. He
conducts service each Sabbath at the coal mines,
eight miles distant, to upwards of eighty miners and
clerks, and in the village at ' The Hat ' he is the only
resident missionary.

" At Broadview^ Brother Joslyn has opened a very
large mission. He goes one Sabbath in the montli to
Crescent City, forty -five miles distant, where he has
a class of about fifteen members, and good congrega-
tions. Then along the railroad he has appointments
about thirty miles, and south and south-west he has
ae /eral others. He has built a parsonage and church
by aid of a loan of $500. He has secured good lots,
and is doing nobly — all in three months.

" At Qu'Appelle Brother Lawson has two new
churches, aided by a loan of 5*500, the last to be
opened next Sabbath. At Virden a good building for
parsonage, with hall for church purposes. Is nearly
completed. The brethren are doing nobly. But the
reduced grants under such circumstances cause me
great sadness."

Returning I visited Regina and Qu'Appelle and
Broadview also, where I found our zealous mission-
ary. Brother Joslyn, carpentering in a new church in
order to liave it ready for tlie opening services on
Sabbath, when I preached twice to full congregations,
and we rejoiced in hope of brighter days in the near
future. At 4 p.m. next day I took cars for Portage
la Prairie and Winnipeg.

In looking over my journals and reckoning up
distances, 1 find tliat From October 2nd. 1882, to
October lOth, 1883, 1 had travelled a distance of

S58

MANITOBA MEMORtfiS.

20,900 miles, by rail or steam or buggy, in the Pro-
vinces and adjoining Territory of our great Dominion.

After preaching missionary sermons on Sabbath at
Brandon, and speaking at the meeting Monday even-
ing, and then doing the same at Portage la Prairie on
the following Sunday and Monday, and again engag-
ing in similar services in Emerson, I left for Ontario,
to enter upon another winter's missionary campaign
at the several points for which I was booked by the
General Secretary, which in the good providence of
God were all reached in due course. Among these
were Scarboro, Queen and Elm Street Churches
(Toronto), St. Catharines, Drummondville, Welland,
St. Thomas, Aylmer, Sparta, Tilsonburg, London
Circuit, Sarnia, Petrolia, Meaford, Mitchell, Clinton,
Owen Sound, Markdale, Flesherton, Streets ville,
Meadowvale, Port Hope, Cobourg, Belleville, and
Brantford.

Returning to Manitoba in May, I preached twice in
Winnipeg, also in Portage la Prairie, at Neepawa and
Minnedosa, and at Prospect and Burnside. On Sat-
urday, 7th of June, I was taken violently ill with
congestion of the liver, which brought me very low
in a few days. Fortunately I was at the parsonage
in Portage la Prairie, and enjoyed the kind and
thoughtful care of Rev. Mr. and Mrs. Woodsworth,
aii'l Mrs Young, who was with me on this trip. In
conse({Uviice ot this illness, I was unable to join in the
opeTri^i;; of *^he Conferenc * of 1884, at Brandon, when
Dr S'p.ffor'l was elected my successor in the presi-
de!; <y. liting advised by my physician that I must

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT TO THE NORTH-WEST. 359

the Pro-
•ominion.
bbatli at
ay even-
'rairie on
n engag-

Ontario,
campaign
d by the
idence of
mg these
Churches

Welland,

London

, Clinton,

reetsville,

ille, and

1 twice in
)awa and
On Sat-
in with
very low
arsonage
ind and
ds worth,
trip. In
in in the
on, when
[he presi-
t I must

seek rest for some time, or imperil my life, I asked
the Confer nee upon my arrival, shortly before its
close, for a superannuated relation for one year. My
case was submitted to the Committee on Church
Relations, with the following result :

" A report from the Committee on Church Rela-
tions was read, submitting in the case of Rev. Dr.
Young that he was temporarily unable, owing to
illness, to engage in regular work.

" Rev. Dr. Young was heard in reference to his
ovvn case. With deep feeling he referred to his past
work in this country and spoke of his continued
interest in the welfare of the Church here, and his
joy in the success of its great prosperity. His phy-
sician, however, advised that he must be set free from
all responsibility, and he himself felt the necessity of
this for the present. He therefore asked that he be
placed in the position of a superannuated minister for
one year, though hoping still to help forward the
work.

" Rev. Jas. Woodsworth moved, Rev. John McDou-
gall seconding, that the request be granted Both
mover and seconder spoke in terms of tht eepest
regret that Dr. Young's temporary retirem- t, even
for a short period, should be necessary.

" Rev. Messrs. Rutledge, Halstead, Dyei Kuttan,
Betts, and the President spoke with evidc (^motion
in reference to Dr. Young's work, and tl ^^ occasion
was felt to be the most solemn one during the session
of the Conference. The motion was carrie<l, all the
members of the Conference rising.

"Rev. ^Jessrs. Stewart and Woodsworth were ap-
pointed a committee to draft a suitable rt^sol tion to
be inserted in the publislied Minutes, expressing the
feelings of the Conference in reference to the retire-
ment of Dr Young."

360

MANITOBA MEMORIES.

If*.

Ill' ,1

! i

^■'i i'

■ i :

111 '

( ' 1

il;

f I

iirt'ii

The following is the resolution thus prepared, and
which was subsequently published in the Christian
Guardian :

" Moved by Rev. J. Woodsworth, seconded by Rev.
John McDougall, and unanimously resolved, That we
as a Conference do hereby express to Rev. Dr. Young
our sense of joy at seeing him with us once again — a
joy that is mingled with great sadness because of his
being compelled, by reason of failing health, to ask
for a superannuated relation. We cannot allow this
opportunity to pass without expressing our high
appreciation of the value of Dr. Young's labors as the
pioneer missionary of the Methodist Church to the
wdiite settlers of the North- West. We glorify God
for what He hath wrought through the instrumen-
tality of His sei /ant, and join in the earnest prayer
that, being restored to health, the Church m'dy for
m,'iny years enjoy the benefit of his godly example
and wise counsels."

As already intimated, I became an itinerant Meth-
odist preacher in Jui-e, 1842. The month of June,
1892, therefore, brought me to the fiftieth anniver-
sary of that event. In view of that fact, my
ministerial brethren of the Manitoba Conference who
had been appointed a committee to arrange for the
services to be held during its sessions in Winnipeg,
gave me a very cordial invitation to preach my
Jubilee sermon on the Conference Sabbath. My
acceptance of the invitation was followed by a severe
attack of la grippe just prior to that date, which,
althougli it did not seem to justify tlie cancelling of
the engagement, did nevertheless so affect me as to

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT TO THE NORTH-WEST. .S6l

red, and
hristian

by Rev.
That we
\ Young
igain — a
je of his
1, to ask
low this
lur high
rs as the
h to the
'ify God
strumen-
t prayer
ma}' for
example

it Meth-
>f June,
-nniver-
.ct, my
Ince who

for the
[innipeg,

.ch my
ti. My
severe
which,

illing of
be as to

make the duty a more than ordinarily difficult task.
My brethren of the Conference and the large con-
gregation present gave me a patient and prayerful
hearing while I preached from the text, " The Lord
hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad ; "
and reminded them of a few of the many "great
things " which the Lord had done for us as a Church
and as individuals, for which we should be glad
before Him with no ordinary gladness. During the
five years which have elapsed since then, I have had
many opportunities of preaching the Word in dif-
ferent parts of the Dominion. But the end draweth
nigh.

I have referred before in these page, lo the devoted
native missionary, Rev. H. B. Steinhauer, now passed
to his reward, and I cannot bring myself to close
these reminiscences without giving my readers the
following synopsis of an exceedingly interesting
address delivered by him at the Conference mission-
ary meeting, and which appeared in the Brandon
papers at that date :

" Being introduced and received with applause,
Mr. Steinhauer said that he was an example of the
fruit of missionary labor. He referred to his ex-
perience during the last forty-four years. Men now
came to the North-West in a sleeping-car, and
sighed to heaven over the great hai'dships they
had to undergo. (Laughter.) He came with Rev.
James Evans by way of Fort William, whence t\^y
had to paddle their own canoes and carry thf^i
on their shoulders across portages. Mr. Evans went
first to Norway HoUvSe, and the speaker to Fort

Ilif'

362

Manitoba memories.

iilflj

Frances, whence, however, he was soon called by
Mr. Evans to act as interpreter and school teacher.
He continued in this capacity some time with Mr.
Evans, until the latter finished his invention of the
syllabic characters, when the speaker began trans-
lating the Scriptures into these characters. The
characters were very simple and easily learned by
the Tndi' is. On being given them in the morning,
an Inaian would sometimes be able to read the same
night. He had been given the Book of Job to trans-
late, and thence to the end of the Prophets, and from
the Acts of the ApostlcvS to the end of the New
Testament ; and, as was known, these were hard
portions to translate. Although difficult for one
man, yet by the help of Go<,l the work was done ;
and now, he was glad to be able to say, these Scrip-
tures were being read by the Indians. On the mis-
sion where he had spent a long time there was hardly
a man, woman or child but could read the Scriptures
in these characters. In their religious gatherings,
every Indian was to be seen having under his arm
his Bible and hymn-book ; and they would search
out the texts of the sermons and follow the preacher
as he read. This was what had been accomplished
by missionary labor, and the Indians would be bene-
fited by it as long as they lived. About twenty-nine
years ago he had been sent to the Saskatchewan
country, after having spent already fourteen years in
service on missions. He had opened up the Oxford
House Mission, where Rev. Enos Langford had been
a missionary for four years. From there he had
been sent to open a mission at White Fish Lake, in
the Saskatchewan country. The beginnings were
small. Besides the occupants of his own tent and
that of another, there was no human being near.
They never forgot to assemble for worship, although
they were so few. After a while the Indians came

MY THIRD APPOINTMENT TO THE NORTH-WEST. 363

Jled by
teacher,
ith Mr.
1 of the
I trans-
i. The
:ned by
norning,
he same
)0 trans-
nd from
he New
re hard
for one
IS done;
le Scrip-
the mis-
s hardly
briptures
iherings,
his arm
I search
reacher
iplished
le bene-
ty-nine
chewan
'•ears in
Oxford
id been
I he had
iake, in
rs were
mt and
Jig near,
(ithough
is came

around, but were very shy. By handing around the
pipe of pv^ace, he caught them with guile, and gained
the opportimit}' of firing upon them the Gospel gun.
After thao a great many came to the ground, and he
commenced preaching the Gospel among them. God
blessing his labors, he did souie good to some of them,
and they felt the converting power of the Gospel.
At present there were about four hundred Indians
there professing Christianity. When they commenced
imitating the white man in making their living out
of the ground they had no hoes, so they made wooden
spades with which they broke some ground. After
a while the missionary got what was called a Scotch
plough ; but they could not make their ponies work,
as, instead of going ahead, they came back. (Laugh-
ter.) Not willing to be beaten, he took some shag-
anapi and hitched up twelve Indians, by which means
he broke up a small piece of ground. On this he
sowed some barley, and thus farming was commenced
at White Fish Lake. He was glad to say that every
family, almost, had now a yoke of oxen, cows, pigs,
etc. Before they embraced Christianity the poor
women did all the work, but now the men shared
the burdens and no longer treated the women as
slaves. They were poor people and could not have
everything they wanted, yet, notwithstanding, they
were trying to imitate the white man as far as they
were able. The women would like to dress some-
thing like the white women. Formerly it took only
two yards of cloth to dress an Indian woman, so they
did not have long trains. In the early days there
was a fashion among the women which they had
since given up; but he saw that among th(^ white
ladies it was becoming resuscitated ; they called it
banging, he thought, (Cheers and laughter.) If the
fashion continued it might come to that of the Black-
feet, who wore a bunch of hair coming down under

! !*^ ^

I' *

i '

KL i i

in !

364

MANITOBA Memories.

the nose and then turned up. (Laughter.) Traders
had wanted to establish posts there, but he would
not allow it. If he had done so at first, there would
have been no mission ; but their Indians were now
somewhat established in Christian knowledge. They
were very zealous in attending the means of grace.
They had two local preachers who led the service in
his absence, five classes, two day-schools, and one
flourishing Sabbath school. (Applause.) Some of
the children were beginning to read the Word of
God in English, and they learned thirty to fifty
verses at a time to recite in Sunday-school. They
were very fond of singing, and it was delightful in
travelling over the plains on a bufi'alo hunt to hear
them sing their beautiful hymns. Formerly, before
the missionary came, only the war-song was heard.
He gave an illustration of this singing, and by way
of contrast sang a hymn in Indian to the tune, ' Hold
the Fort,' and was applauded with spirit on conclud-
ing. He expressed his pleasure in the kind reception
given him ; thought that the same feelings would not
be given to the pagan Indians seen on the streets of
the town, and said that the difference in his favor
was due to missionary labor. But for this and the
treatment bestowed by the Hudson Bay Company,
the white people would not have got up here so
easily and possessed themselves of the heritage of
the Indians. It was not the redcoats who had
secured this peace, though he would not speak dis-
respectfully of them ; it was Christianity. He hoped
his hearers would be more than ever for the spread
of this cause, that every Indian in the North- West
' might know the only true God, and Jesus Christ
whom He has sent.' " (Applause.)

Traders
e would
•e would
ere now
. They
►f grace.
Tvice in
md one
ome of
►V^ord of
to fifty
• They
htful in

to hear
% before
i heard,
by way
3, ' Hold
jonclud-
sception
)uld not
greets of
is favor
bind the
)mpany,
here so
[tage of
tio had
sak dis-
e hoped
! spread
ih-West

Christ