The X Y COMPANY.
"Le Marquis" Simon McTavish unpopular--Alexander Mackenzie his
rival--Enormous activity of the "Potties"--Why called X Y--Five
rival posts at Souris--Sir Alexander, the silent partner--Old Lion
of Montreal roused--"Posts of the King"--Schooner sent to Hudson
Bay--Nor'-Westers erect two posts on Hudson Bay--Supreme folly--Old
and new Nor'-Westers unite--List of partners.
For some years the Montreal fur companies, in their combinations and
readjustments, had all the variety of the kaleidoscope. Agreements were
made for a term of years, and when these had expired new leagues were
formed, and in every case dissatisfied members went into opposition and
kept up the heat and competition without which it is probable the fur
trade would have lost, to those engaged in it, many of its charms.
In 1795 several partners had retired from the North-West Company
and thrown in their lot with the famous firm that we have seen was
always inclined to follow its own course--Messrs. Forsyth, Richardson
and Co. For a number of years this independent Montreal firm had
maintained a trade in the districts about Lake Superior. The cause
of this disruption in the Company was the unpopularity, among the
wintering partners especially, of the strong-willed and domineering
chief in Montreal--Simon McTavish. One set of bourgeois spoke of him
derisively as "Le Premier," while others with mock deference called him
"Le Marquis." Sir Alexander Mackenzie had been himself a partner, had
resided in the Far West, and he was regarded by all the traders in the
"upper country" as their friend and advocate. Although the discontent
was very great when the secession took place, yet the mere bonds of
self-interest kept many within the old Company. Alexander Mackenzie
most unwillingly consented to remain in the old Company, but only for
three years, reserving to himself the right to retire at the end of that
time.
Notwithstanding their disappointment, and possibly buoyed up with the
hope of having the assistance of their former friend at a later period,
the members of the X Y Company girt themselves about for the new
enterprise in the next year, so that the usual date of this Company is
from the year 1795. Whether it was the circumstance of its origination
in dislike of "Le Premier," or whether the partners felt the need of
greater activity on account of their being weaker, it must be confessed
that a new era now came to the fur trade, and the opposition was carried
on with a warmth much greater than had ever been known among the old
companies. A casual observer can hardly help feeling that while not a
member of the new Company at this date, Alexander Mackenzie was probably
its active promoter behind the scenes.
The new opposition developed without delay. Striking at all the salient
points, the new Company in 1797 erected its trading house at Grand
Portage, somewhat more than half-a-mile from the North-West trading
house and on the other side of the small stream that there falls into
the Bay. A few years after, when the North-West Company moved to
Kaministiquia, the X Y also erected a building within a mile of the new
fort. The new Company was at some time in its history known as the New
North-West Company, but was more commonly called the X Y Company. The
origin of this name is accounted for as follows. On the bales which
were made up for transport, it was the custom to mark the North-West
Company's initials N.W. When the new Company, which was an offshoot
of the old, wished to mark their bales, they simply employed the next
letters of the alphabet, X Y. They are accordingly not contractions,
and should not be written as such. It was the habit of members of
the older Company to express their contempt for the secessionists by
calling them the "Little Company" or "the Little Society." In the
Athabasca country the rebellious traders were called by their opponents
"Potties," probably a corruption of "Les Petits," meaning members of "La
Petite Compagnie." When these names were used by the French Canadian
voyageurs, the X Y Company was referred to.
However disrespectfully they may have been addressed, the traders of
the new Company caused great anxiety both to the North-West Company and
to the Hudson's Bay Company, though they regarded themselves chiefly
as rivals of the former. Pushing out into the country nearest their
base of supplies on Lake Superior, they took hold of the Red River and
Assiniboine region, as well as of the Red Lake country immediately south
of and connected with it. The point where the Souris empties into the
Assiniboine was occupied in the same year (1798) by the X Y Company.
It had been a favourite resort for all classes of fur-traders, there
having been no less than five opposing trading houses at this point four
years before. No doubt the presence of the free-trading element such as
McCracken and Jussaume, whom we find in the Souris region thus early,
made it easier for smaller concerns to carry on a kind of business in
which the great North-West Company would not care to be engaged.
Meanwhile dissension prevailed in the North-West Company. The
smouldering feeling of dislike between "Le Marquis" and Alexander
Mackenzie and the other fur-trading magnates broke out into a flame.
As ex-Governor Masson says: "These three years were an uninterrupted
succession of troubles, differences, and misunderstandings between these
two opposing leaders." At the great gathering at the Grand Portage in
1799, Alexander Mackenzie warned the partners that he was about to
quit the Company, and though the winterers begged him not to carry out
his threat, yet he remained inexorable. The discussion reported to
Mr. McTavish was very displeasing to him, and in the following year
his usual letter to the gathering written from Montreal was curt and
showed much feeling, he saying, "I feel hurt at the distrust and want of
confidence that appeared throughout all your deliberations last season."
Alexander Mackenzie, immediately after the scene at Grand Portage,
crossed over to England, published his "Voyages," and received his
title. He then returned in 1801 to Canada. Flushed with the thought of
his successes, he threw himself with great energy into the affairs of
the opposing Company, the X Y, or, as it was also now called, that
of "Sir Alexander Mackenzie and Company." If the competition had been
warm before, it now rose to fever heat. The brigandage had scarcely any
limit; combats of clerk with clerk, trapper with trapper, voyageur with
voyageur, were common. Strong drink became, as never before or since, a
chief instrument of the rival companies in dealing with the Indians.
A North-West Company trader, writing from Pembina, says: "Indians daily
coming in by small parties; nearly 100 men here. I gave them fifteen
kegs of mixed liquor, and the X Y gave in proportion; all drinking; I
quarrelled with Little Shell, and dragged him out of the fort by the
hair. Indians very troublesome, threatening to level my fort to the
ground, and their chief making mischief. I had two narrow escapes from
being stabbed by him; once in the hall and soon afterwards in the shop."
Such were the troubles of competition between the Companies. The new
Company made a determined effort to compete also in the far-distant
Peace River district. In October of this year two prominent partners of
the new Company arrived with their following at the Peace River. One
of these, Pierre de Rocheblave, was of a distinguished family, being
the nephew of a French officer who had fought on the _Monongahela_
against Braddock. The other was James Leith, who also became a prominent
fur-trader in later days.
Illustrating the keenness of the trade conflict, John McDonald, of
Garth, also says in 1798, writing from the Upper Saskatchewan, "We had
here (Fort Augustus), besides the Hudson's Bay Company, whose fort was
within a musket shot of ours, the opposition on the other side of the
new concern I have already mentioned, which had assumed a powerful shape
under the name of the X Y Company, at the head of which was the late
John Ogilvy in Montreal, and at this establishment Mr. King, an old
south trader in his prime and pride as the first among bullies."
Sir Alexander Mackenzie did wonders in the management of his Company,
but the old lion at Montreal, from his mountain château, showed a
remarkable determination, and provided as he was with great wealth,
he resolved to overcome at any price the opposition which he also
contemptuously called the "Little Company." In 1802, he, with the skill
of a great general, reconstructed his Company. He formed a combination
which was to continue for twenty years. Into this he succeeded in
introducing a certain amount of new blood; those clerks who had shown
ability were promoted to the position of bourgeois or partners. By this
progressive and statesmanlike policy, notwithstanding the energy of the
X Y Company, the old Company showed all the vigour and enthusiasm of
youth.
An employé of the North-West Company, Livingston, had a few years before
established a post on Slave Lake. Animated with the new spirit of his
superiors, he went further north still and made a discovery of silver,
but on undertaking to open trade communications with the Eskimos, the
trader unfortunately lost his life.
Other expeditions were sent to the Missouri and to the sources of the
South Saskatchewan; it is even said that in this direction a post was
established among the fierce tribes of the Bow River, west of the
present town of Calgary.
Looking out for other avenues for the wonderful store of energy in the
North-West Company, the partners took into consideration the development
of the vast fisheries of the St. Lawrence and the interior. Simon
McTavish rented the old posts of the King--meaning by these Tadoussac,
Chicoutimi, Assuapmousoin, and Mistassini, reached by way of the
Saguenay; and Ile Jérémie, Godbout, Mingan, Masquaro, and several others
along the north shore of the Lower St. Lawrence or the Gulf. The annual
rent paid for the Kings posts was 1000_l._
But the greatest flight of the old fur king's ambition was to carry
his operations into the forbidden country of the Hudson Bay itself.
In furtherance of this policy, in 1803 the North-West Company sent
a schooner of 150 tons to the shores of Hudson Bay to trade, and
along with this an expedition was sent by land by way of St. John and
Mistassini to co-operate in establishing stations on the Bay. By this
movement two posts were founded, one at Charlton Island and the other at
the mouth of the Moose River. Many of the partners were not in favour
of these expeditions planned by the strong-headed old dictator, and the
venture proved a financial loss. Simon McTavish, though comparatively
a young man, now thought of retiring, and purchased the seigniory of
Terrebonne, proposing there to lead a life of luxury and ease, but a
stronger enemy than either the X Y or Hudson's Bay Company came to break
up his plans. Death summoned him away in July, 1804.
The death of Simon McTavish removed all obstacles to union between the
old and new North-West Companies, and propositions were soon made to Sir
Alexander Mackenzie, and his friends, which resulted in a union of the
two Companies. We are fortunate in having preserved to us the agreement
by which the two Companies--old and new North-West Companies--were
united. The partners of the old Company were given three-quarters of
the stock and those of the new one-quarter. The provisions of the
agreement are numerous, but chiefly deal with necessary administration.
One important clause is to the effect that no business other than the
fur trade, or what is necessarily depending thereon, shall be followed
by the Company. No partner of the new concern is to be allowed to have
any private interests at the posts outside those of the Company. By
one clause the new North-West Company is protected from any expense
that might arise from Simon McTavish's immense venture on the Hudson
Bay. It may be interesting to give the names of the partners of the two
Companies, those who were not present, from being mostly in the interior
and whose names were signed by those having powers of attorney from
them, being marked Att.
THE NORTH-WEST OR X Y COMPANY.
Alex. Mackenzie.
Thomas Forsyth, Att.
John Richardson.
John Inglis, Att.
James Forsyth, Att.
John Mure, Att.
John Forsyth.
Alex. Ellice, Att.
John Haldane, Att.
Thomas Forsyth, Att.
Late Leith, Jameson & Co. (by Trustees).
John Ogilvie.
P. de Rocheblane, Att.
Alex. McKenzie, Att. (2).
John Macdonald, Att.
James Leith, Att.
John Wills, Att.
OLD NORTH-WEST COMPANY.
John Finlay, Att.
Duncan Cameron, Att.
James Hughes, Att.
Alex. McKay, Att.
Hugh McGillies, Att.
Alex. Henry, Jr., Att.
John McGillivray, Att.
James McKenzie, Att.
Simon Fraser, Att.
John D. Campbell, Att.
D. Thompson, Att.
John Thompson, Att.
John Gregory.
Wm. McGillivray.
Duncan McGillivray, Att.
Wm. Hallowell.
Rod. McKenzie.
Angus Shaw, Att.
Dl. McKenzie, Att.
Wm. McKay, Att.
John McDonald, Att.
Donald McTavish, Att.
John McDonnell, Att.
Arch. N. McLeod, Att.
Alex. McDougall, Att.
Chas. Chaboillez, Att.
John Sayer, Att.
Peter Grant, Att.
Alex. Fraser, Att.
Æneas Cameron, Att.
Anyone acquainted in the slightest degree with the early history of
Canada will see in these lists the names of legislative councillors,
members of Assembly, leaders in society, as well as of those who, in
the twenty years following the signing of this agreement, by deeds of
daring, exploration, and discovery, made the name of the North-West
Company illustrious. These names represent likewise those who carried
on that wearisome and disastrous conflict with the Hudson's Bay Company
which in time would have ruined both Companies but for the happy union
which took place, when the resources of each were well-nigh exhausted.