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V errata id to It le pelure, 9on A n 1 2 3 32X 1 2 3 4 5 6 f T 532 MISSION LIFE. rMigglon Life, L Sept. 1, 1870. began by his virtue, piety, and zeal. He has refused more lucra- tive posts, lest the Ban de la Eoche should relapse into its former desolation ; and, by his extraordinary exertions, he averted from his parishioners, in 1812, 1816, and 1817, the horrors of an approaching famine. Such a benefactor of mankind deserves the reverence and gratitude of all good men." The subject of so just a praise refused, however, to acknow- ledge that he deserved it. " Any other man," he replied, " would have done as much in my position." The district of the Ban de la Boche remains a model parish. But Oberlin quitted that scene of labour in the month of June, 1826. The memory of his faith, which still pervades it, is his real monument. MISSION WOKK IN BRITISH COLUMBIA. By Dr. Eobert Brown, F.R.G.S. RITISH COLUMBIA is a thinly peopled colony, the white inhabitants not numbering at any time more than 15,000, and those being chiefly gold miners — a floating population. Victoria, on Vancouver Island, is the capital, a town of about 8,000 inhabitants ; while, Nanaimo, another small town of 800, is wholly occupied in coal mining. Mining camps are scattered over all the country, south of the Frazer River ; but, north of that line, the only white population are the few people connected with the Hudson Bay Company, who have one or two ports for the fur trade scattered throughout the dreary expanse of that wood, and lake, and river-dotted territory. The Indian population is in a very primitive condition- perhaps more so, than in any other portion of the British Pos- sessions in America. In Vancouver Island, they are entirely confined to the coast, and number, according to a census made by the writer, less than 10,000 souls, while in British Columbia (the mainland) they now reach to the number of 20,000 — rather less than more; but, they are everywhere on the decrease. These tribes differ widely from each other, in language, in habits, Slieislon Llfe,-| Sept. 1, 187U. J MISSION WORK IN BRITISH COLUMBIA. 533 in personal physique, and in moral character; but, all alike possess certain general characteristics. The earliest Missionaries in British Columbia were French Canadian priests, and many of these still labour in the country. No one cognisant of their self-denying character, would for one moment desire to speak of these clergymen with any other feel- ings than respect. Still, a long and intimate acquaintance with Indian Missions and Indian character enables me to say, that, however successful Roman Catholic Indian Missions may be for the time being among savages, their effect is to a great extent superficial and evanescent, and consists more of mere forms and an outward superstitious reverence for the person of the Missionary, than in any real heart change. As it is to the English Missions that I propose to devote these few pages, I will leave the Roman Catholic Missionaries with what I have said, only premising that they have stations at Victoria and neigh- bom-hood, Nanaimo, Cowichan, near Fort Rupert, various places on Frazer River, in the Kootenai country, and other places in the south of British Columbia. The Protestant Missions are confined to the Church of England and to the Wesleyan body from Canada. The Wesleyans have stations at Nanaimo, as well as churches — more especially, however, for the whites — at New Westminster, Victoria, and, occasionally in the summer, at some of the mining camps of Cariboo. The Missionaries more especially connected with the Church of England, and under the control of the Bishop of Columbia, are stationed at Vancouver Island, at Victoria, Cowichan, and Nanaimo, and on the mainland at various towns on Frazer River, while one or other of the Missionaries periodically visit stations at Comox and other outposts, fo 'ihe benefit of both the settlers and the Indians. This, in a few words, expresses the general distribution of the Mission force at the present time, though, it ought to be noted, that there may possibly have been some recent changes. These are frequently being made, as funds increase or decrease, or as it seems proper to those under whose control such matters are. Previous to 1857, there were no Protestant clergymen in the colony, except the Hudson Bay Company's chaplain at Victoria ; and, he exerted himself little, in reference to the native popula- 63775 534 MISSION LIFE. r.MlgMon Lite, L Sept. 1, 1870. tion. In that year, Mr. William Duncan, a layman who had been trained at Highbury College, came to the country as a Missionary. Mr. Duncan was a man, peculiarly fitted for the work in hand ; for, beside being a earnest labourer in the field he had chosen, he had a .-.hrewd business knowledge, having been originally employed as a commercial traveller, in which pursuit he was held in high esteem by his employers. In 1859, came the Wesleyan Mission ; and, in the same year. Dr. Hills, Vicar of Yarmouth, was appointed Bishop of Columbia. Several clergy of the Church of England accompanied him, and hence was laid the foundation of the present English Mission among the Indians I in British Columbia. Pleasant through the task, it would far exceed both time and space to sketch in any detail the history of these different Mission stations, or the fortunes of those who have laboured so assiduously at them. Suffice to say, that one and all appear to have conscientiously striven to do their duty, though, it need scarcely be added, with varying success. Mr. Duncan's mission, however, is of so remarkable a cha- racter, not only in the history of British Columbian Mission, but in the whole story of Missionary effort, that I may be pardoned if I speak of it more in detail. When Mr. Duncan came to Victoria in 1857, he was soon convinced that it was almost hopeless to establish a Mission there, so degraded were the natives by the contact of white traders and other depraved individuals. Accordingly, he soon removed to another part of the Hudson Bay Company, Fort Simpson — just on the borders of the then Russian America, 500 miles north of Victcna. Here, his prospects seemed not very encouraging. The natives were a handsome, intelligent race, vastly superior in intellectual ability to the flat-heuded tribes to the south, but also excelling them in all sorts of immorality. Cruel in their nature, their religious rites were equally cruel. One of this devoted Missionary's earliest experiences was at one of their great annual medicine rites, where he beheld a sight which chilled his blood with horror. A crowd of dancing medi- cine men, excited to the pitch of demoniacal madness, came forth to the sound of drums from the village surrounded by troops of people. The dead body of a slave, killed for the pur- pose, lay on the beach ; and, round the body the crowd closed ; then, it opened again, and exhibited to the horror-stricken gazo T MlHslon Ltfe,i Hept.I,1870.J MISSION WORE IN BRITISH COLUMBIA. 435 i of the Missionary two of the highest grade of medicine men, each toaring at a limb of the dead body. This signified " the highest rank " in a long series of gradations of " medicine work" — a sort of demoniacal " sorcery" — if the word may be used, in default of a better. But, Mr. Duncan never lost heart, often as he was told by the traders, who little sympathised with him, that he had better go home — he could never do anything with such a people. Prudently avoiding the ridicule of the Indians by not attempting to address them in their own difficult language — the Tsimpshean — until he could do so well, he meanwhile studied their ways and matured his plans. Tempting the children to school, he gi'adually gained a footing, though slowly ; and, often, his life was in danger from the concealed or open enmity of the "medicine men," those arrant rogues being shrewd enough to foresee that their craft was in danger. Soon, his indomitable force of character fought its way into their confidence, and a little band gathered round him. As at Victoria, Mr. Duncan saw that, if he was to produce any permanent good, he must remove his people out of reach of the immoral influence of the fori and its surroundings. Those who know what a coast Indian trading-fort is, will require no explana- tion from me ; nor, will I shock the sensibilities of those who do not, by attempting to picture it. Immorality of the vilest description was rampant, whenever the Hudson Bay vessels arrived ; and, at any time, vice was not to be sought for in any very hidden places. What little good he could do, was more than counterbalanced by the immoraUty around. This determined him to remove his Mission to the beautiful Sound of Metlakatlah (or Metlakah), forty miles south of Fort Simpson, where he could have them specially under his own control. In this effort, he was freely seconded by many of the Indians, who desired to return to what had been their old home, before Fort Simpson, with its trade attractions, had been built. He now commenced a regular system with them, teaching them the arts of peace and civilisation, as well as indoctrinating them with the higher Christian virtues, without which all else had been but vain. Instead of the collection of filthy huts, which a coast Indian village consists of, he laid out regular streets, and esta- blished statute labour for the making of proper roads. Gardens were marked off, and Indians who used to peer into the flower , 1 1 ■ ' . ,-; I 536 MISSION LIFE. rMlfiPlon Life, L Sept. 1, 1B70. plots with wistful eyes, while on a visit to Victoria, now began to cultivate vegetables and flowers for themselves. When a savage takes to gardening, there is some hope for him. Searching out the men with peculiar capabilities and tastes, ho set them up in trades, instead of allowing them to follow the old savage plan of no division of labour. Accordingly, if you pass into Metlakatlah, you may see old Legech, the former chief, busily working under a signboard, which informs passers-by that he is a " Carpenter and Cabinet Maker." The Tsimpsheans are a very artistic people, and caiTe beautiful work in ivory, wood, or stone : they even make jewellery, out of gold and silver coin ; so that, he had little difficulty in setting them to work at various crafts of that nature. A police and a jail were likewise provided, as well as a public market, a court-house, and a lodging-house for strangers, who might come to the settlement. These aboriginal ladies and gentlemen being the reverse of cleanly, the house had to be care- fully cleansed, soon after their departure ; but, the pleasant, clean, houses of the inhabitants would thus remain undisturbed and undefiled, without laying them under the charge of want of hos- pitality. On the contrary, strangers were invited to visit the settlement, to witness the prosperity which civilisation could bring; and, many other Indians, convinced by these cogent proofs, left savagedom and joined their brethren at Metlakatlah. The governor having coniiircd the Commission of the Peace on Mr. Duncan, the Missions. ry-Magistrate was thereby enabled to clear his settlement of any rascally whiskey-traders, whom he found prowling about for Iheir vile ends. This was not always done without peril, for >',hese scoundrels are desperate characters, and on one occasion an unfortunate conflict occurred, in which several Indians wero killed or wounded. To those, who know the Indian character, nothing was more astonishing, than to see how readily they allowed themselves to be assessed for these "government works" and improvements, each family contributing according to its relative status or wealth. Finding that it was not only inconvenient to the Indians, but prejudicial to their morals, to pay visits for trading purposes to Fort Simpson, Mr. Duncan opened a store in the new village, in which they could supply every want, at a more moderate profit than in the Hudson Bay or other establishments. This arrange- ment did not, of course, increase the popularity of the Metla- &' ; I-lfe, U7U. M!Mlan Ltfo.-i Sept. 1, 1870. J MISSION WORK IN BItlTISH COLUMBIA. 537 to ige mi in of ah. i : katlah Mission among the people interested in the Indian trade ; and, much covert malice was set in work against it, on that gi-ound alone. Feeling convinced that one of the surest ways to the civilisa- tion of the Indians was through commerce, he proposed the plan to the Indians of providing a schooner of their own, in shares. The money was soon subscribed, and regularly their vessel made her trips to Victoria, manned by Indians, though commanded by a white man. The reason of this was, not that the Indians were incapable of navigating the vessel alone, but on account of the jealousy of the government that they would smuggle. This obstacle was ultimately overcome ; and, for some time, until the death of the Indian captain in the conflict referred to, the schooner was wholly manned and officered by Indians. I do not remember ever seeing a more interesting sight than its intelligent, well- dressed commander, who a few years before was a mere savage in a blanket, going to the harbour-master's office in Victoria to clear his vessel and start oflf again, after having complied with the requirements of the port. On one of these trips, the profits amounted to several hundred pounds, which was, of course, dis- tributed among the shareholders. The religious state of the Mission is now most satisfactory, many converts continually joining, and very few relapses occurring. Every professor of religion is put upon a severe probation, and, contrary to what I have seen in some Missions, his profession is not taken for granted, but carefully judged by his life and con- versation. Immorality in the women was notoriously the bane of these Northern tribes.* Now all is changed. Though, I regret to say, many Indian women still come to Victoria for irreligious purposes, yet these are entirely confined w the uncivilised tribes, and never include a single member of Mr. Duncan's flock. I know no higher compliment to that devoted man's labours, than the fact that, by his exertions on behalf of the morality of the natives, he has incurred the malice and hatred of the rascals, whose evil passions he has thwarted. Such, in a few words, is the wonderful Mission of Metlakatlah, which is a standing monument to the success of English Mis- * For some account of the Hydaks, an allied nation, and their topes, see the writer'6 account of the Queen Charlotte Islands in the Proceedings of the Royal Geog. Society for 1869. 688 MISSION LIFE. rMIHRlon LIfp, L Sept. 1, 187U. sions on the North Pacific, and an answer to those who are loud and blatant in proclaiming that they are failures. If in any case they have met with a partial want of success, it has been from causes for which the Missionaries are not to blame, and from other and widely diflTerent circumstances. It may be mentioned, that, though Mr. Duncan has translated portions of the Scriptures and other books into the Tsimpshean language, yet, English having now become so general among his people, he hopes soon to find these works in the native tongue unnecessary. I have seen letters from natives at Metla- katlah to their friends in Victoria, some of which were vastly superior to what a half-educated Englishman or woman could produce. Nevertheless, strong fears prevail, that Mr. Duncan's interesting Mission cannot long remain in its pristine Utopia-like position. Over-civilisation must reach it, and, sad to think, will corrupt it. It is to be hoped that, by that time, Metlakatlah will have gained such a strength as to enable it to withstand the insidious attacks of the vices, which over-civilisation and unfettered com- merce have always brought in their train, as a curse and ruin to aboriginal races. In conclusion, taking a lay view of Mr. Duncan's settlement and Mission, without any couleur de rose aspect of it, I may be allowed to express my astonishment, knowing what the natives whom he has to deal with are by nature and what they are under his teaching. As a layman, who knows Indian character well, and as one largely indebted to the Missionary, to whose teachings he owes safety among tribes where there was no safety previously, I shall try to explain, in a few words, what are the obstacles to Mis- sionary effort in British Columbia. These obstacles are in part due to the Indian character, and in part to the Missionary himself. As regards the native habits — (1) There is the ingratitude of the native character ; for, whatever may be said to the contrary, the Western Indian is essentially ungrateful. His selfishness is always uppermost, and he, judging from his own "dull and earthy life," cannot conceive that any one should labour on his behalf, without gaining some advantage therefrom to himself. Hence, when Mr. Duncan first commenced to labour at Fort .ji* -A 1 MUfton T.