On Canada's Frontier: Sketches of History, Sport, and Adventure and of the Indians, Missionaries, Fur-traders, and Newer Settlers of Western CanadaRalph, Julian
History
On Canada's Frontier: Sketches of History, Sport, and Adventure and of the Indians, Missionaries, Fur-traders, and Newer Settlers of Western Canada
Ralph, Julian
Hudson's Bay Company -- History; Indians of North America -- Canada; Northwest, Canadian -- Description and travel
An incident of this typical journey I am describing would, at more than
one season, be a meeting with some band of Indians going to a post with
furs for barter. Though the bulk of these hunters fetch their quarry in
the spring and early summer, some may come at any time. The procession
may be only that of a family or of the two or more families that live
together or as neighbors. The man, if there is but one group, is certain
to be stalking ahead, carrying nothing but his gun. Then come the women,
laden like pack-horses. They may have a sled packed with the furs and
drawn by a dog or two, and an extra dog may bear a balanced load on his
back, but the squaw is certain to have a spine-warping burden of meat
and a battered kettle and a pappoose, and whatever personal property of
any and every sort she and her liege lord own. Children who can walk
have to do so, but it sometimes happens that a baby a year and a half or
two years old is on her back, while a newborn infant, swaddled in
blanket stuff, and bagged and tied like a Bologna sausage, surmounts the
load on the sled. A more tatterdemalion outfit than a band of these
pauperized savages form it would be difficult to imagine. On the plains
they will have horses dragging travoises, dogs with travoises, women
and children loaded with impedimenta, a colt or two running loose, the
lordly men riding free, straggling curs a plenty, babies in arms, babies
swaddled, and toddlers afoot, and the whole battalion presenting at its
exposed points exhibits of torn blankets, raw meat, distorted pots and
pans, tent, poles, and rusty traps, in all eloquently suggestive of an
eviction in the slums of a great city.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account