CHARLIE AND BEN.
During a short visit which I paid to England in the winter of 1877,
the idea was formed of building a separate Home for Indian girls, and
now it became necessary to make the project known also in Canada.
Accordingly, in the summer vacation of that year I started off, taking
with me two little fellows from our Institution--Charlie and Ben, and
also a model which I had made of the Shingwauk Home. My object was not
so much to collect money as to tell the friends who had been helping us
what, by God's help, we had been enabled to do, and what, with His
blessing, we still hoped to do.
The first part of the journey was a dash of two miles along a muddy
road in a buggy drawn by my spirited little mare "Dolly," with only ten
minutes to catch the boat. The next 300 miles were passed on board the
steamboat _Ontario_, which, after rather a rough passage, landed
us in Sarnia on the night of Tuesday, May 22nd. From Sarnia we took
train to Toronto. Here we passed the Queen's birthday, and the boys saw
a splendid display of fireworks in the evening. The most remarkable
part of the entertainment was a races between a pig and an elephant in
mid-air. They were fire balloons shaped like those animals, and it was
really very good. On Friday we arrived in Belleville about noon. This
was the beginning of our work, and we held our first meeting that
evening in the Town Hall. There was a fair attendance, and after the
meeting our two boys distributed papers about our Home, and
contribution envelopes, which I asked the people to take home with
them, and at any future day that they might feel disposed, to put
something in and place it on the offertory plate, and it would thus in
due time come to us. The envelopes, I should mention, had the following
words on them: "Algoma. A contribution to God's work in the Indian
Institution at Sault Ste. Marie."
After visiting Brockville, Smith's Falls, and Prescott, we arrived in
Ottawa on the 31st. I had here an interview with the Premier in regard
to my work among the Indians, which was quite satisfactory, and in the
afternoon we went to pay our respects to the Governor-General. Happily
his Excellency was at home, and he received the boys very kindly, and
showed them through the rooms of Rideau Hall. One thing that he said to
them at parting I hope they will always remember. He said, "I hope you
boys will grow up to be good Canadians." This just expresses the secret
of our work; this is just what we want to do with our Indian boys: to
make Canadians of them. When they leave our Institution, instead of
returning to their Indian Reserves, to go back to their old way of
living, we want them to become apprenticed out to white people, and to
become, in fact, Canadians.
At Montreal we had several meetings, and met with many kind friends
who evinced great interest in our work.
Early on the morning of June 8th we arrived in Quebec, and found rooms
provided for us at the hotel. The Synod of the diocese was sitting, and
we received a hearty welcome from the Bishop and many of the clergy
whom I knew. In the afternoon I took the boys to the citadel, where
they were greatly pleased to see the soldiers and the big guns; and in
the evening we dined at the Bishop's. Both the Bishop and Mrs. Williams
have always taken much interest in our work. On Sunday evening I
preached at the cathedral. The following day I took my boys over the
ocean steamship _Sardinian_, and in the afternoon drove out to
visit Wolf's monument and the gaol. The boys each took a copy of the
inscription on the monument, and we returned to Mr. Hamilton's for
dinner. There was a capital meeting in the National School Hall in the
evening. The Bishop of Quebec presided, and nearly all the city clergy
were present.
We had not intended to go further east than St. John, N. B., but finding
we had a day or two to spare, we resolved to run on into Nova Scotia and
visit Halifax. Two telegrams had been despatched, one to Rev. Geo. Hill,
rector of St. Paul's, Halifax, to tell of our intended visit, and the
other to Montreal in the hope of obtaining a pass from the manager of
the line. The application for the pass was happily successful, and after
travelling all day and all night and half the next day, we at length
reached Halifax, met with a warm reception from Mr. Hill and had a
capital meeting. The boys enjoyed themselves immensely, paddling about
in the sea water among the limpets and star-fish and sea-weed, and
making vain attempts to catch crabs.
Returning by way of New Brunswick, we next visited Fredericton, and
were the guests of the Lieutenant Governor, who had most kindly invited
us. The Bishop and a large party of clergy and others came to lunch at
two p.m., and at four o'clock in the afternoon was a Sunday-school
gathering in the school-house, the model was exhibited and I gave an
address. After this there was a very pleasing little ceremony at
Government House. At Lady Tilley's invitation a number of young girls,
members of her Sunday-school class, had met together week after week at
Government House and made a variety of articles for sale, then--shortly
before our arrival--a bazaar had been held, and the large sum realized
of 300 dollars. This sum was presented to me by one of the little girls
when they were all assembled in the drawing-room, and is to be applied
to the building fund of the Wawanosh Home. The most successful meeting
of any that we held took place in the large Temperance Hall. Lady
Tilley kindly consented to become one of the patronesses of our Girl's
Home. The following day, Wednesday, I called on the Bishop and we spent
an hour and a half very pleasantly in examining every part of their
beautiful cathedral--the _one_ church gem in Canada. The Bishop
set to work in his own way to satisfy himself what our boys were good
for, and I am glad to say that the result of the examination was
satisfactory.
The afternoon of this day, June 26th, we bade farewell to our
Fredericton friends and took the train back to St. John. About half an
hour before we arrived we received word that a fearful fire was raging,
and as we drew near the fated city we found that the report was only
too true. The whole city seemed to be in a blaze, the fire appearing to
extend fully two miles, even at that early hour, about 6 p.m. Leaving
the two boys at the Rev. Mr. Dowling's house, Mr. Dowling and myself
started to cross the harbour to try and render some assistance to our
friends. We could not take the ferry for the landing stage was on fire,
so we hailed a fishing-smack, and landed in Portland. We walked around,
to the back of the fire; all the principal part of the city was in
flames, and everything in wild confusion; hundreds of people, old and
young, heavily ladened and hustling each other along, fire engines at
every corner, the open places crowded with a motley throng of people
with piles of baggage and furniture.
We made our way round to Mrs. Peter's house, where we had been on
Saturday; they were all packed up ready to fly, but could not get a
team. The flames were fast advancing upon them. The gas works were
close by, and it was expected they would blow up every minute. The
younger children were already sent off with their nurse. We staid till
after midnight, doing what little we could to help, and then returned
to Carleton by the suspension bridge, bringing several refugees with
us. The following day, Thursday, we drove to the station in St. John by
way of the suspension bridge. The city was still on fire and enveloped
in smoke. Happily, however, the station was just outside the burnt
district, so we bade adieu to our friends and started once more for the
west.
After visiting and holding meetings in Toronto, Hamilton, St.
Catharines, and elsewhere, we arrived July 4th at Niagara. We were now
in the great fruit district of Canada, strawberries, cherries, grapes,
apples, plums, peaches, all in the greatest abundance, orchards
everywhere, rich luxuriant vines trailing over trellis-work, the earth
fairly teeming with plenty. What a contrast to poor Algoma, where we
can grow neither apple nor plum and cannot even ripen tomatoes. Nothing
delighted our boys more than to sit up in a cherry tree and eat
cherries _ad libitum_--such a delicious novelty--and then to be
summoned in for a tea of strawberries and cream! In the evening we met
Archdeacon McMurray, who received us warmly. He was the first
Missionary at Sault Ste. Marie, more than forty years ago, and very
kindly gave us an organ for the Institution. From Niagara, we proceeded
by train to Drummondville. The falls of Niagara were scarcely more than
a stone's throw from the house, and the following morning as soon as
breakfast was over we went to pay them a visit. Grand and impressive as
was the sight, I fear that our boys, boylike, were more taken up with a
couple of bears in their cages than with that enormous mass of water
surging over the rocks, and tumbling 200 feet into the boiling basin of
white foam below.
On Friday the 6th we arrived in Brantford and had a meeting in the
evening. The following day we walked out to visit the Mohawk
Institution, supported by the New England Company; this institution has
been, I believe, nearly thirty years in existence, and they have at
present thirty-eight boys and forty-two girls. It was strange how shy
our boys seemed of the young Mohawks, though making friends so readily
with white boys. Mohawks and Ojebways were hereditary enemies, and, in
days gone by, used to delight in scalping one another.
Altogether we travelled upwards of 4000 miles, and I calculated that I
had addressed about 5,500 people at meetings and about 6700 Sunday-
school children, besides sermons in churches. Though we made no
collections, I nevertheless had handed to me 990 dollars for the Girl's
Home Building Fund, and 225 dollars for the Shingwauk.