Canadian Crusoes: A Tale of The Rice Lake Plains Part 18

Formerly the Rice Lake Plains abounded in deer, wolves, bears, racc.o.o.ns, wolverines, foxes, and wild animals of many kinds. Even a few years ago, and bears and wolves were not unfrequent in their depredations; and the ravines sheltered herds of deer; but now the sight of the former is a thing of rare occurrence, and the deer are scarcely to be seen, so changed is this lovely wilderness, that green pastures and yellow cornfields now meet the eye on every side, and the wild beasts retire to the less frequented depths of the forest.

From the undulating surface, the alternations of high hills, deep valleys, and level table-lands, with the wide prospect they command, the Rice Lake Plains still retain their picturesque beauty, which cannot be marred by the hand of the settler even be he ever so devoid of taste; and many of those who have chosen it as their home are persons of taste and refinement, who delight in adding to the beauty of that which Nature had left so fair.

APPENDIX D. Page 157, _note_.

"I will now," says our Indian historian, "narrate a single circ.u.mstance which will convey a correct idea of the sufferings to which Indians were often exposed. To obtain furs of different kinds for the traders, we had to travel far into the woods, and remain there the whole winter. Once we left Rice Lake in the fall, and ascended the river in canoes as far as Belmont Lake. There were five families about to hunt with my father on his ground. The winter began to set in, and the river having frozen over, we left the canoes, the dried venison, the beaver, and some flour and pork; and when we had gone further north, say about sixty miles from the white settlements, for the purpose of hunting, the snow fell for five days in succession, to such a depth, that it was impossible to shoot or trap anything; our provisions were exhausted, and we had no means of procuring any more. Here we were, the snow about five feet deep, our wigwam buried, the branches of the trees falling all about us, and cracking with the weight of the snow.

"Our mother (who seems, by-the-bye, from the record of her son, to have been a most excellent woman) boiled birch-bark for my sister and myself, that we might not starve. On the seventh day some of us were so weak they could not guard themselves, and others could not stand alone. They could only crawl in and out of the wigwam. We parched beaver skins and old moca.s.sins for food. On the ninth day none of the men could go abroad except my father and uncle. On the tenth day, still being without food, the only ones able to walk about the wigwam were my father, my grandmother, my sister, and myself. Oh, how distressing to see the starving Indians lying about the wigwam with hungry and eager looks!--the children would cry for something to eat! My poor mother would heave bitter sighs, of despair, the tears falling profusely from her cheeks as she kissed us! Wood, though in plenty, could not be obtained on account of the feebleness of our limbs. My father would at times draw near the fire and rehea.r.s.e some prayer to the G.o.ds. It appeared to him that there was no way of escape; the men, women, and children, dying; some of them were speechless, the wigwam was cold and dark, and covered with snow!

"On the eleventh day, just before daylight, my father fell into a sleep; he soon awoke, and said to me: 'My son, the good Spirit is about to bless us this night; in my dream I saw a person coming from the east walking on the tops of the trees; he told me we should obtain two beavers about nine o'clock. Put on your moca.s.sins, and go along with me to the river, and we will hunt beaver, perhaps, for the last time.' I saw that his countenance beamed with delight and hope; he was full of confidence. I put on my moca.s.sins and carried my snow-shoes, staggering along behind him about half a mile. Having made a fire near the river, where there was an air-hole through which the beaver had come up during the night, my father tied a gun to a stump with the muzzle towards the air-hole; he also tied a string to the trigger, and said, 'Should you see the beaver rise pull the string, and you will kill it.' I stood by the fire, with the string in my hand; I soon heard the noise occasioned by the blow of his tomahawk; he had killed a beaver and brought it to me. As he laid it down, he said, 'Then the great Spirit will not let us die here;' adding, as before, 'if you see the beaver rise, pull the string;' and he left me. I soon saw the nose of one, but I did not shoot. Presently, another came up; I pulled the trigger, and off the gun went. I could not see for some moments for the smoke. My father ran towards me with the two beavers, and laid them side by side; then, pointing to the sun,--'Do you see the sun?' he said; 'the great Spirit informed me that we should kill these two about this time in the morning. We will yet see our relatives at Rice Lake. Now let us go home, and see if our people are yet alive.' We arrived just in time to save them from death. Since which we have visited the same spot the year the missionaries came among us.

"My father knelt down, with feelings of grat.i.tude, on the very spot where we had nearly perished. Glory to G.o.d! I have heard of many who have perished in this way far up in the woods."--_Life of George Copway, written by himself_, p. 44.

APPENDIX E.

Page 184.--"_... on first deciding that it was a canoe._"

The Indians say, that before their fathers had tools of iron and steel in common use, a war canoe was the labour of three generations. It was hollowed out by means of fire, cautiously applied, or by stone hatchets; but so slowly did the work proceed, that years were pa.s.sed in its excavation. When completed, it was regarded as a great achievement, and its launching on the waters of the lake or river was celebrated by feasting and dancing. The artizans were venerated as great patriots.

Possibly the birch-bark canoe was of older date, as being more easily constructed, and needing not the a.s.sistance of the axe in forming it; but it was too frail to be used in war, or in long voyages, being liable to injuries.

The black stone wedges, so often found on the borders of our inland waters, were used by the Indians in skinning the deer and bear. Their arrow-heads were of white or black flint, rudely chipped into shape, and inserted in a cleft stick. A larger sort were used for killing deer; and blunt wooden ones were used by the children, for shooting birds and small game.

APPENDIX F.

Page 195.--_"... the Christian mind revolts with horror."_

There is, according to the native author, George Copway, a strong feeling in the Indians for conversion and civilization, and a concentration of all the Christianised tribes, now scattered far and wide along the northern banks of the lakes and rivers, into one nation, to be called by one name, and united in one purpose--their general improvement. To this end, one of the most influential of their chiefs, John Jones, of Dover Sound, offered to give up to his Indian brethren, free of all cost, a large tract of unceded land, that they might be gathered together as one nation.

In the council held at Sangeeny, where were convened Indian chiefs from lakes St. Clare, Samcoe, Huron, Ontario, and Rice, and other lakes, it was proposed to devise a plan by which the tract owned by the Sangeenys could be held for the benefit of the Ojebwas, to pet.i.tion Government for aid in establishing a manual-labour school, and to ascertain the general feeling of the chiefs in relation to forming one large settlement at Owen's Sound. At this meeting forty-eight chiefs were a.s.sembled.

There is much to admire in the simple, earnest, and courteous style of the oration delivered by Chief John Jones, and will give to my readers some idea of the intelligence of an educated Indian:--

"Brothers, you have been called from all your parts of Canada, even from the north of Georgian Bay. You are from your homes, your wives, and your children. We might regret this, were it not for the circ.u.mstances that require you here.

"Fellow-chiefs and brothers, I have pondered with deep solicitude our present condition and the future welfare of our children, as well as of ourselves. I have studied deeply and anxiously, in order to arrive at a true knowledge of the proper course to be pursued to secure to us and our descendants, and even to those around us, the greatest amount of peace, health, happiness, and usefulness. The interests of the Ojebwas and Ottawas are near and dear to my heart; for them I have often pa.s.sed sleepless nights, and have suffered from an agitated mind. These nations, I am proud to say, are my brothers, many of them bone of my bone; and for them, if needs be, I would willingly sacrifice anything.

Brothers, you see my heart." _[Here he held out a piece of white paper, emblematical of a pure heart.]_

"Fellow-chiefs and warriors, I have looked over your wigwams throughout Canada, and have come to the conclusion that you are in a warm place _[query, too hot to hold you]_. The whites are kindling fires all round you _[i.e. clearing land]_.

"One purpose for which you have been called together, is to devise some plan by which we can live together, and become a happy people; so that our dying fires may not go out, _i.e._ our people become extinct, but may be kindled, and burn brightly, in one place. We now offer you any portion of the land we own in this region, that we may smoke the pipe of peace, and live and die together, and see our children play and be reared on the same spot. We ask no money of you. We love you; and because we love you, and feel for you, we propose this.

"My chiefs, brothers, warriors. This morning" _[the speaker now pointed with his finger towards the heavens]_, "look up and see the blue sky: there are no clouds; the sun is bright and clear. Our fathers taught us, that when the sky was without clouds, the Great Spirit was smiling upon them. May he now preside over us, that we may make a long, smooth, and straight path for our children. It is true I seldom see you all, but this morning I shake hands with you all, in my heart.

"Brothers, this is all I have to say."

APPENDIX G.

Page 213.--_"... and aimed a knife at his throat"_

The period at which these events are said to have occurred was some sixty or eighty years ago, according to the imperfect chronology of my informant. At first, I hesitated to believe that such horrible deeds as those recorded could have taken place almost within the memory of men.

My Indian narrator replied--"Indians, no Christians in those days, do worse than that very few years ago,--do as bad now in far-west."

The conversion of the Rice Lake Indians, and the gathering them together in villages, took place, I think, in the year 1825, or thereabouts.

The conversion was effected by the preaching of missionaries from the Wesleyan Methodist Church; the village was under the patronage of Captain Anderson, whose descendants inherit much land on the north sh.o.r.e on and about Anderson's Point, the renowned site of the great battle.

The war-weapon and bones of the enemies the Ojebwas are still to be found in this vicinity.

APPENDIX H.

Page 232.--_"This place she called Spooke Island"_

Spooke Island. A singular and barren island in the Rice Lake, seventh from the head of the lake, on which the Indians used formerly to bury their dead, for many years held as a sacred spot, and only approached with reverence. Now famous for two things, _picnics_ and _poison ivy, rhus toxicodendron,_--many persons having suffered for their temerity in landing upon it and making it the scene of their rural festivities.

APPENDIX I.

Page 253.--_"and nothing but fire."_

The Indians call the Rice Lake, in allusion to the rapidity with which fires run over the dry herbage, the Lake of the Burning Plains.

Certainly, there is much poetical fitness and beauty in many of the Indian names, approximating very closely to the figurative imagery of the language of the East; such is "Mad-wa-osh," the music of the winds.

APPENDIX K.

Page 272.--_"but it was not so in the days whereof I have spoken."_

_From George Copway's Life._

Converted Indians are thus described in the "Life" of their literary countryman, George Copway:--

_Chippewas of the River Credit._--These Indians are the remnant of a tribe which formerly possessed a considerable portion of the Elome and Gore Districts, of which, in 1818, they surrendered the greater part for an annuity of 532_l._ 10_s._ reserving only certain small tracts at the River Credit; and at sixteen and twelve miles creeks they were the first tribe converted to Christianity. Previous to the year 1823 they were wandering pagans. In that year Peter Jones, and John his brother, the sons of a white by a Mississaga woman, having been converted to Christianity, and admitted as members of the Wesleyan Methodist Church, became anxious to redeem their countrymen from their degraded state of heathenism and spiritual dest.i.tution. They collected a considerable number together, and by rote and frequent repet.i.tions, taught the first principles of Christianity to such as were too old to learn to read, and with the Lord's Prayer, the Creed, and Commandments, were thus committed to memory. As soon as the tribes were converted they perceived the evils attendant on their former state of ignorance and vagrancy. They began to work, which they had never done before; they recognised the advantage of cultivating the soil; they gave up drinking, to which they had been greatly addicted, and became sober, consistent, industrious Christians.

J. Sawyer, P. Jones, Chiefs; J. Jones, War-chief.

The _Chippewas of Alnwick_ were converted in 1826-7 They were wandering pagans, in the neighbourhood of Belleville, Kingston, and Gannoyne, commonly known as Mississagas of the Bay of Quinte; they resided on Grape Island, in the Bay of Quinte, six miles from Belleville.

They resided eleven years on the island, subsisting by hunting and agriculture. Their houses were erected partly by their own labour and by the Wesleyan Missionary funds; these consist of twenty-three houses, a commodious chapel and school, an infant school, hospital, smithy, shoemaker's shop and joiner's. There are upwards of 300 of these Indians.

The chiefs are--Sunday; Simpson; G. Corrego, chief and missionary interpreter.

_Rice Lake Chippewas_.--In 1818 the greater part of the Newcastle and Colburn districts were surrendered, for an annuity of 940_l_. These Indians have all been reclaimed from their wandering life, and settled in their present locations, within the last ten or twelve years.

_[FN: I think G. Copway is incorrect as to the date of the settling of the village, as it was pointed out to me in 1832. Note,--In the year 1822 the larger part of the Indian village on Anderson's Point was built and cultivated.]_ The settlement is on the north side of the lake, twelve miles from Peterborough. Number of Indians, 114; possessing 1,550 acres, subdivided in 50-acre lots.

Chiefs--Pondash, Copway, Crow.

Deer were plenty a few years ago, but now only few can be found. The Ojebwas are at present employed in farming instead of hunting; many of them have good and well-cultivated farms; they not only raise grain, enough, for their own use, but often sell much to the whites.