Dayspring in the far West: sketches of mission-work in north-west America

Preface

jN offering this little book to the public, the object the writer has in view is to present to her readers a comprehensive outline of the work accomplished in North-West America by the Church Missionary Society; work, of which she be¬ lieves too little is known and understood. That she has said so little about the work accomplished at Red River is owing to the fact that she was restricted from taking up the ground so admirably occupied by Miss Tucker in “ The Rainbow of the North.” She has therefore merely given an outline of the early history of the Settlement, and contrasted its present condition of prosperity, and religious and educational advantages, with the ignorance and barbarism which prevailed when the first missionaries arrived in thv

VI

Preface.

Settlement. That the emigrants from this country to Central British America are now supplied with churches and faithful pastors, as well as the means of educating their children, is owing in a great measure to the labours of the Church Missionary Society ; for the churches and schools originally provided for the Indian population have passed on to the church organization of the colony, as the advancing tide of white men has driven the Indian further West. The writer does not claim for her work any originality. It has been compiled from the manuscript letters and journals of the Missionaries themselves, which were kindly placed at her disposal by the Committee of the Church Missionary Society. She has also made free use of the information contained in the publications of the Society, to which she has added such descriptions of the country, derived from the most trustworthy sources, as give an additional interest to the narrative. For much valuable information respecting the country, its people, climate, scenery, resources, &c., she is indebted to the books of which a list is appended. She prefers thus to acknowledge her obligations, rather

Preface. vii

than always to give her authority in a foot-note, because to do so would give an air of pedantry to a very unpretending little book. But while the writer does not claim for her book any originality, she does claim for it strict veracity. These sketches of Missionary work are pictures from the life ; in no instance has the writer drawn on her imagination, or endeavoured to impose on the credulity of her readers. Truthfulness and simplicity characterize the whole. Should any who may peruse these pages be stirred up to take a deeper interest in Missions, and practically to manifest that interest in deeds, it will not have been written in vain. Of the many blemishes and imperfections of her work no one is more fully aware than the writer ; for these she craves the indulgence of the reader, and she ventures to send it forth, earnestly and humbly hoping that in regard to it the Master may condescend to say of her as of one of old, “ She hath done what she could.”

M. E. J.

LIST OF BOOKS MADE USE OF IN DRAWING UP THE FOLLOWING NARRATIVE.

(.Besides the Publications of the Church Missionary Society.)

The Red River Settlement . Capt. Huyshe.

The Great Lone Land. Capt. Butler.

The North-West Passage by Land. Lord Milton and Dr. Cheadle. Professor Hind's Narrative of the Canadian Exploring Expedition of 1857, and of the Assiniboine and Saskatchewan Exploring Expe¬ dition of 1858.

The Government Blue Books for 1859 and i860.

British North America. Religious Tract Society, 1872.

Ten Years' Work amongst the Tsimsheean Indians.

The writer also begs to acknowledge the courtesy of Miss Wilson in kindly providing her with some interesting information respecting the “ Garden River Mission.”

Conclusion

Appendix I.— Present State of the Missions.

Appendix II.—Chronological Summary of the Missions

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

Travelling in Rupert’s Land . . ..3.

Arrival of Mail—Rupert’s Land.7

North American Plain Indians.28

Female Cree Half-Breed . 30

“ Wigwam,” Ojibbeway Half-breed.32

Sick Indian and Medicine Man.34

“ Susan,” Swampy Half-breed.36

Bishop Horden, of Moosonee.38

Moose Church and Factory, James’s Bay.39,

Coast Indians at Rupert’s House.40

Rupert’s House in Winter.40

Arrival of Rev. W. W. Kirkby at Churchill, July, 1873 {from a

Photograph taken on the spot) .45

Stanley Station, English River.46

Rev. W. W. Kirkby in Travelling Dress.52

Tukuth or Loucheux Chief.62

Fort Simpson, Mackenzie River.67

The Right Rev. W. C. Bompas, Bishop of Athabasca . . .76

Esquimaux Man and Woman.g 2

Esquimaux Chief.83

Esquimaux hunting the Moose.95

Going to Church in Rupert’s Land.1x3

Legaic threatening Mr. Duncan’s Life.131

The Christian Village of Metlakatlah.149

Chief “ Little Pine ”.169

DAYSPRING IN THE FAR WEST.

Chapter I. A Glance At The Country

British Possessions in North America, Extent.—Boundaries.—Climate.— Minerals, Animals.—Future of the Country.—Responsibility of Britain.

J| 58 Fp?lHE British possessions in North America comprise an area of four millions of square miles. The extreme length from the Atlantic to the Pacific is 3000 miles, and from north to south 2000 miles; a territory larger than the whole of Europe, over which the British Queen reigns supreme. On the north, east, and west, this great territory is bounded by the ocean, excepting, how¬ ever, the north-western corner, which formerly belonged to Russia, and now constitutes the province of Alaska, belonging to the United States. On the south it is separated from the American States by a line running along the 49th parallel of latitude as far as the Lake of the Woods, then along the south shore of Rainy Lake and River to Lake Superior, thence to Lake Huron, to the river and lake of St. Clair, through Lake Erie, across Lake Ontario, down the St. Lawrence, until near

Montreal, whence it runs along the 45th parallel of latitude as far as the 71st meridian of longitude ; then it bends north till it meets the St. John’s River, and once more bending south, it terminates in the Bay of Fundy, separating the State of Maine from New Brunswick. On the east is the Island of Vancouver, with several smaller islands.

What was formerly known as the Hudson’s Bay Company’s Territory is now included in the Dominion of Canada, com¬ prising the whole of Central British America to the Pacific and the River Youcon on the west, and the Polar Sea on the north. “ It has been calculated that the whole territory belonging to Britain is capable of supporting forty millions of inhabitants, of which Central British America might of itself maintain nineteen millions. As this is more than ten times its present population, this country will for many years to come present a magnificent field for colonization, and for the employment of British capital, and for the exercise of that energy and enterprise for which the British race is renowned.”

Considering the vast extent of this region, a remarkable uniformity of climate prevails ; the western part is, however, warmer than the eastern, even at a higher degree of latitude. It is well adapted for English constitutions, and even for delicate persons the climate of the Peninsula of Western Canada is in many respects suitable.

The climate of the southern districts is much superior to the northern, yet extreme cold often prevails throughout the whole of British North America, the ground being sometimes covered for three or four months with several feet of snow. Nevertheless, the absence of fogs, and the serenity of the atmosphere, render the cold less felt, while the snow keeps

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A Glance at the Country.

the ground warm and enriches the soil, and when beaten down, timber and other things can be conveyed considerable distances on sleighs. The winter is longer than that of Europe, but it passes away quickly; the heat in summer is great, and cereals and fruits ripen rapidly. Even the winter in these colonies has its peculiar pleasures. Sleigh driving, skating boats, sailing on the ice, afford out-door amusement, while the long winter evenings afford time for the reading and study of God’s Word, as well as for the cultivation of the mind. “ So serene is the atmosphere,” writes one who resided in this country, “ that when the thermometer is at the lowest, the lumberer will work with no other covering on his shoulders than his flannel vest. The heat in summer is for a short time excessive, but the air is pure and dry, hence it is not oppres¬ sive. Spring is the most unpleasant part of the year, when the snow begins to melt, and mud prevails, but the hot sun and wind soon dry up the mud ; the soil fertilized by the snow is soon arrayed in the tender hues of spring ; the grass springs up immediately, and flowers and fruits come quickly to perfection.

“ ® ut ^ s P r ing and summer were less pleasant than they are, ample amends would be made by the temperature which is enjoyed in autumn. This season, peculiar to North America, is called the Indian summer. Words cannot adequately describe the elasticity of the atmosphere, the exhilaration it produces ; it must be felt to be understood. The face of nature assumes a new aspect. The green which clothes the forests in summer is replaced by the most gorgeous tints; the maple assumes the brightest red and yellow of many shades, the oak a bright copper, the beech a delicate colouring of the purest gold and amber. While some trees assume various colours, the beech takes but one, the most beautiful imaginable; the ground is covered with golden leaves, while overhead a canopy of the same flutters in the breeze, through which the sun’s rays stream, shedding a joyous light through this most fairy-like of nature’s halls. The first rude blast of winter strips every branch and spray, and as if by the rod of the magician the whole scene is changed. Winter, too, has its beauties, it is,bright and full of interest as the joyous spring, the glowing summer, and the unspeakably delicious autumn.”

The natural resources of the country are great. The soil, throughout a large extent of country, is abundantly fertile, the extensive ramification of streams and lakes covering the face of the country afford water communication with the most remote districts, and when the land shall become more popu¬ lous, and smiling farmsteads shall dot the face of the country, the produce of the farm can thus be conveyed to market at a small expense.

The mineral treasures are rich beyond computation. Coal formations are found from Mackenzie River to the point where Red Deer River joins the South Saskatchewan. The gold fields of British Columbia are now attracting a large popu¬ lation ; gold has also been found in the neighbourhood of the Peace River on the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains, and probably it exists in other portions of British territory. The northern shores of Lakes Huron and Superior abound in copper and iron. Large coal-fields exist in Nova Scotia on the east, and in Vancouver’s Island on the west. In the centre cf the country salt-springs are found.

Multitudes of wild animals are found in Central British America. Thousands of buffaloes are recklessly slaughtered for their tongues, and skins, or robes, as the fur traders call them, while the carcases are left lying on the ground for want of a market for their flesh. The fur trade is highly important, and has materially influenced the destinies of the country.

The greater number of the fur-bearing quadrupeds live in the northern forests, as the racoon, ermine, badger, black bear, red fox, the lynx, the beaver, the musquash, or musk rat, and the moose deer, whose northern range terminates where the aspen and the willow cease to grow. The grizzly bear, the largest and most ferocious of its kind, is found in the Rocky Mountains. The prairie wolf, the grey fox, the Virginian hare, live in the prairies. The wapiti, a large stag, is found on both sides of the Rocky Mountains. The prong-back, an antelope, fleeter than the horse, roams over the western part of the continent, and migrates in winter to California and Mexico. There are thirteen species of the ruminating order in North America. There are five hundred species of birds, a great proportion of them being aquatic. In consequence of the vast expanse of water and marshy ground, innumerable water-fowl and waders are found in North America.

The fisheries of North America are very valuable. Salmon is plentiful in the rivers. There are five species of perch ; pike and sturgeon also abound, and numberless other species of fish.

There are three hundred and thirty-two genera of plants peculiar to North America. One hundred and sixty varieties of trees yield excellent timber. There are seven species of wild grapes, nuts, mulberries; raspberries and strawberries

Dayspring in the Far West.

grow well. Melons and other fruits which will not ripen out of doors in England come to perfection without artificial forcing, while tobacco, hops, and flowers have been cultivated with success.

The mineral wealth of this magnificent country, its water communication, its abundant fuel, its wood, stone, and clay for building, its rich pastures for cattle, and fertile lands for the growth of cereals, the game of its woods, and the fish of its rivers, its climate so conducive to health and cheerfulness, show it to be pre-eminently adapted to be the habitation of men; and doubtless the time is not far distant when those vast solitudes shall be peopled by our own countrymen, who, taking with them their labour and their skill, and what is still more important, the plodding industry which distinguishes the sons of Britain, shall find in the Far-West prosperous and happy homes—homes, we trust, in which the fear of God will rule paramount—homes where fathers and mothers will train up their children in the fear of the Lord—homes in which no greed of gain will tempt their occupants to deeds of injustice and cruelty to the Red man, who still roams over the prairies of the West. When the settler shall take possession of the fertile lands which stretch from the western shore of the beautiful Lake of the Woods to the foot of the Rocky Moun¬ tains, it is to be hoped that the Gospel will go with him, that the faithful minister of Christ will accompany the emigrant, and that those now desolate wilds shall reverberate with the sound of the church-going bell, that God’s sacred day will be hallowed, and from many a now lonely spot shall ascend the sweet sounds of prayer and praise to Him who has clothed the earth with beauty, and caused it to bring forth fruit for the

A Glance at the Country.

use of man, and oh ! wondrous love, has given His only beloved Son to die for us, that we, through Him, may inherit a home too glorious for the heart of man to conceive—a home pre¬ pared alike for the red man and the white man, but a home into which “ shall in no wise enter anything that defileth, or worketh abomination, or maketh a lie.”

God has laid great responsibilities on Britain by giving this rich country into her hands. The pioneers of the Gospel have gone thither, and the success which has attended their efforts abundantly proves that these red men are capable of being civilized and evangelized. How incumbent is it upon us, then, to care for and instruct the immortal souls of the wild men who once called the land their own ! This hitherto little known country is about to become one of the great highways of commerce between England and Asia. The Canadian Pacific Railway, for the construction of which the British Parliament has guaranteed a loan, will attract towards those fertile regions a vast tide of emigration. Will Britain be faithful to her trust ? will she send the standard-bearers of the Cross with those who go forth from her shores to make fortunes in those fair lands ? will she, mindful that it is righteousness which exalteth a nation, provide for the religious instruction of her sons, who shall perhaps lay the foundation of a powerful nation in the rich prairies of the West ? It is said, that to the piety of the little band who colonized New England the United States owes even now all that is found there of true religion ; the spirit and the influence of those God-fearing men who, persecuted in their own land, sought a home across the waters of the Atlantic, where they might worship God according to their conscience, is to this day felt through the

Dayspring in the Far West.

length and breadth of that now powerful nation. In a far wider sense may such be the case with the colonists who shall in future leave our own country to people the wilds of America. May gratitude for the signal blessings which the Lord of heaven and earth has conferred on Britain, animate her to make efforts commensurate to the needs of the vast territory she owns ! May there be many whose hearts con¬ strained by the love of Christ' shall willingly offer themselves to go into this portion of the Lord’s vineyard ! Let us pray that “ great may be the company of preachers ” who shall dispense the Word of life both to red and white men in those far-off regions. Let us pray that there may be many who, hearing the Master’s call, “ Whom shall I send ? and who will go for us ? ” will respond, “ Here am I, send me.”

“ How beauteous are the feet of those who bear Mercy to men, glad tidings to despair!

Far from the mountain’s top, they lovelier seem Than moonlight dews, or morning’s rosy beam.”

John the Baptist. (Prize Poem.)

Chapter II. The Red River

The Red River.—Early History of the Settlement.—First Missionaries.— Progress.—Present Condition.—Indian Settlement.—Scanterbury. Lansdowne.—Islington.—Portage La Prairie.—Westbourne.

—_ - 1LMOST at the central point of the North American I U continent, and not far south of the boundary-line between the United States.and the British pos¬ sessions, two small lakes may be noticed on the map. In the one, Lake Ithasca, the mighty Mississippi takes its rise, and flows southwards for 3000 miles, until it falls into the Gulf of Mexico. From the other, Ottertail Lake, which is nine feet higher (1689 feet above the sea level), flows Red River in an exactly opposite direc¬ tion, crossing the boundary-line, and running northwards till it falls into Lake Winnipeg. It is 900 miles in length from its rise to its estuary. “ Its name is said to have been derived from a bloody Indian battle which once took place on its banks, tinging the river with crimson dye. It certainly cannot be called red from the hue of its water, which is of a dirty white colour.”

io Day spring in the Far West.

“The plain through which the Red River flows is fertile beyond description. At a little distance it looks like one vast level prairie, through which the windings of the river are marked by a dark line of woods fringing the whole length of the stream ; each tributary has its line of forest, a line visible many miles away over the great sea of grass. The effect of sunset over these oceans of verdure is very beautiful; a thousand hues spread themselves upon the grassy plain ; a thousand tints of gold are cast along the heavens, and the oceans of earth and sky intermingle in one blaze of glory at the very gates of the setting sun. Here at Red River we are only at the threshold of the sunset, its true home is yet many days’ journey to the West, where the long shadows of the vast herds of bison travel slowly over the immense plains, huge and dark against the golden West, where the red man still sees in the glory of the setting sun the realization of his dream of heaven

Along the banks of this river, and stretching farther west still, through the basin of the Saskatchewan, to the foot of the Rocky Mountains, is a land abounding in mineral wealth, clothed with magnificent forests, where extend boundless prairies, affording rich pasturage for countless herds of buffalo, in many places gay with various species of wild flowers, through which roam tribes of Red Indians, who depend for subsistence on fishing and the chase—where darkness has for ages veiled the land, and gross darkness the people—where ignorance and superstition have long held their sway—where deeds of cruelty, treachery, and blood have long defiled the land.

Upon this land of darkness and desolation the day has at 1 The Great Lone Land.

The Red River.

length dawned. Already “the morning spread upon the mountains gives promise of a glorious day of light and glad¬ ness ; superstition, folding her sable wing,-recedes before the advancing dawn ; and the bright beams of the Sun of Right¬ eousness gilding the mountain tops afford an earnest of their noonday splendour.”

Of the progress of the Gospel in this interesting country we purpose giving some account in the following pages.

The Red River Settlement dates from the year 1811, when the Earl of Selkirk purchased from the Hudson’s Bay Com¬ pany and the Cree and Saulteaux Indians a large tract of land stretching along both banks of the Red River and the Assiniboine. The country was at that time inhabited only by wandering tribes of Indians, and visited from time to time by the agents of the Hudson’s Bay and North-West Fur Com¬ panies, who had trading-posts in the neighbourhood. Vast herds of buffalo, now driven to the west of Red River, then roamed over its prairies,and frequented the rich feeding grounds of Minnesota. The greater number of the settlers were Scotch¬ men and Protestants, yet there was no minister of the Gospel among them, no place of worship from north to south, from east to west of the wide-spreading territory. Is it therefore to be wondered at that God’s laws were set at defiance, and deeds of violence committed which were a disgrace to civilized men ? In 1820, Mr. West, a clergyman selected by the Church Missionary Society, arrived in the settlement in the capacity of Chaplain to the Hudson’s Bay Company. He was instructed to reside at Red River, and to endeavour to ameliorate the condition of the Indians. In 1822 the Church Missionary Society determined to commence a Mission at Red River,

Day spring in the Far West.

and appointed the Rev. David Jones their first Missionary, he arrived at the Settlement in October, 1823. In 1825 the Rev. W. Cockran was sent out by the Church Missionary Society to preach the Gospel to the Indian tribes. “To the untiring exertions of this pioneer of Missionary enterprise in the Far West is owing in a great measure, under the blessing of God, and the influence of the Holy Spirit resting on his labours, the improved condition of the Indians and half-breeds in the settlement.” 8 “At that time Red River was an isolated settlement of civilized and half-civilized men in the midst of a vast region of barbarism. A very small portion of land had been brought into cultivation by the European settlers. The rest of the inhabitants, Canadians, half-breeds,and Indians,depended chieflyfor subsistence on the chase and fishing. Their principal dependence was the buf¬ falo hunt, which took place twice a year, when 700 or 800 hunters would set out in pursuit, accompanied by their wives, and children, and horses to bring home the spoil.” If for any reason the hunt proved unsuccessful, both Indians and settlers would necessarily be reduced to great straits. It was there¬ fore necessary for the Missionaries to cultivate land and rear cattle in order to provide food for their families and schools, as well as to assist the number of destitute half-breeds and Indians, whose improvidence reduced them to the last ex¬ tremity of starvation. For everything they needed beyond the produce of their farms, for furniture, hardware, tools, books, clothing, and other things which contribute to daily

s British North America. Religious Tract Society, 1872. For full account of Mission-work at Red River, see “ Rainbow in the North.”

The Red River.

comfort, Missionaries and colonists were dependent on England.

Very different is the aspect which Red River now presents. Professor Hind thus describes his first impressions of the settlement in his narrative of the Red River Exploring Expe¬ dition of 1857:—

“Red River enters Lake Winnipeg by six different channels. Fourteen miles from the mouths of the river is the Indian village, founded by Archdeacon Cockran. A little below the village the country rises, the banks are about thirty feet high, the timber is imposing, and all the aspects of a level, fertile region invest the scene, but the same¬ ness in the general appearance of the banks becomes monoto¬ nous after the wild and varying beauties of the Winnipeg. The sight of clearings, however, with the neat white houses of the settlers at the Indian Missionary village speedily creates other impressions, aroused by such fair comparisons between the harmonizing influence of civilization, and the degraded brutal condition of a barbarous heathen race. These suggestive signs of improvement in moral and social position rapidly create a healthy tone of feeling in passing from the cascades and rapids of the Winnipeg, where half-clad savages fish and hunt for daily food, to the even flow of Red River, where Christian men and women, once heathen and wild, now live in hopeful security on its banks.”

“ About four miles above the Indian Missionary village, a bend in the stream gives rise to a sharp projection of the level plateau, called Sugar Point, from the groves of maple which cover it. Near Sugar Point is a school in connexion with the Indian Mission below, situated north of the line which divides the parish of St. Peter from that of St. Andrew, and marking the northern limits of Red River Settlement. At the Grand Rapids, so called from the character of the river which flows through it, is grouped an assemblage of substan¬ tial stone buildings, which create a favourable impression of Red River resources and comfort, not unfrequently repeated in ascending the stream.”

“ A farmer is attached to the Indian Settlement, which is cultivated with great care by the Indians; it is intended to serve as a model for other Christian Indians, and also to provide them with seed and supplies in the event of their own stock failing—a contingency by no means improbable, since habits of forethought and economy are rarely acquired by these people until the second generation. Potatoes grow to a size unknown in England, many weighing as much as ten ounces each ; asparagus, cabbages, brocoli and shallots grow luxuriantly. In the farmyard may be seen ducks, fowls, turkeys, pigs, sheep, and excellent milking cows, while flower¬ ing shrubs and annuals adorn the garden which surrounds the Mission-house.”

Between St. Peter’s Church in the Indian settlement, and the point where the Red River is joined by its tributary, the Assiniboine, there are four Christian churches and congrega¬ tions which owe their existence to the labours of the Church Missionary Society. One of these, St. John’s, formerly known as the Upper Church, at the junction of the two rivers, was made over to the Bishop of Rupert’s Land, when that see was created in 1849, by the appointment of Bishop Anderson, who for sixteen years laboured with much zeal to promote the highest interests of the Indian. A second church, six miles

The Red River.

lower down the stream, formerly called the Middle Church, now, St. Paul’s, was also transferred when the work ceased to be missionary. Eight miles further down the stream, in the neighbourhood of the Grand Rapids, is St. Andrew’s, formerly known as the Lower Church, and nearly midway between it and the Indian Settlement Church, from which St. Andrew’s is eleven miles distant, stands St. Clement’s, Mapleton. The congregations in these two churches are chiefly either Euro¬ peans, or persons of mixed descent, with but a small sprink¬ ling of native Christians, and the duties are chiefly of a pastoral character.

The Red River territory is now called the Province of Manitoba. Its capital is Winnipeg, a rapidly rising town near the junction of the Red River and the Assiniboine. Here is St. John’s College, which includes a boarding-school for boys and girls, and is under the immediate supervision of Bishop Machray. A superior education is given, and some of the pupils have distinguished themselves at the English universities ; while others have been ordained to preach the Gospel in their native land. There are also parochial schools, and a model training institution; no less then ten Church of England schools are supported by the Church Missionary Society.

About twenty miles from the Indian Settlement is another Missionary station, known by the name of Scanterbury. It is situated on the Broken Head River, one of the small feeders of Lake Winnipeg. Here is a little community of native Christians, numbering forty-three individuals. Some sixty miles north-east of Scanterbury is Fort Alexander, on the Winnipeg, not far from which is the Mission Station of x 6 Day spring in the Far West.

Lansdowne. About one hundred miles from Lansdowne is the Mission station of Islington, formerly known by the name of Chien-blanc. It stands on an oasis of two hundred and fifty acres, on the banks of the Winnipeg, not far from where it issues from the Lake of the Woods.

The Roman Catholics were the first to establish a Mission at Islington, but having withdrawn from it, the Church Missionary Society occupied the Station, sending Mr. Philip Kennedy there as Catechist in 1850. In 1851 the Rev. R. James was appointed to this Mission, and he it was who changed its name of Chien-blanc to Islington. An English lady afterwards gave ^1000 towards this Mission, to which she generously added ^100 per annum for its maintenance. It occupies an important position between the province of Mani¬ toba and Canada Proper. A farm is attached to the Mission ; wheat, Indian corn, and potatoes grow well here. In North- West America it is necessary for each Mission Station to have its farm whenever the nature of the soil admits of its being cultivated ; and this not only for the supply of the wants of the Missionary and his family, but in order that he may be able to assist the Indians who flock around him in seasons of scarcity ; were he unable to supply their wants they must disperse in search of food, and thus the opportunity of retain¬ ing them for a time, and giving them religious instruction would be lost. The Indians at Islington belong to the Swampy Crees, and hunt on the Lower Winnipeg. The heathen Swampys acknowledge the existence of a supreme and good Being, but they address their invocations to the Evil Spirit. Many of the Saulteaux Indians are also found on the route