j
|
|
1

" - Wolverine, a stout vessel built

+ shallow draught, for Lake
‘' Winnipeg is a very shallow
- lake; over its nearly 10,000
:, square miles the chart rarely
‘: shows a depth of more than 7_
: or 8 fathoms. So. these two.
-, Steamers, with so much above.
:: water and so little below, were
=“ very much at the mercy of the
- wind, and there might be three
-.. or four weeks in July and

’ not make it to Grand Rapids,

_ that could be serious.

would be near to freezing over

Wednesday, January 7, 1976

‘THE REVIEW

Problem Of Supplies A Continuing One In Far-Away North Country

This is the fourth article ina

series penned by Sidney

resident Ethel Horsefield.
Illustrated by her husband
Archdeacon Raymond Hor-
Sefield, the series deals with
the experiences the two en-
countered during their many
years of ministry amongst

indian peoples of Canda’s far
North.

By ETHEL HORSEFIELD

If the housing situation at

Grand Rapids was tem-
porarily surprising,
problem of supplies was a
continuing one. Everything

had to be brought up Lake

Winnipeg by steamboat from
Winnipeg, 350 miles away.

There were three large

vessels: one was the Govern-
ment owned, steel-hulled s.s.
Bradbury, used for fisheries

patrol, for maintenance of the

few buoys and lights; and,
once a year, to bring the In-
dian Agent, the policeman and
the doctor to see us. (As a
fisheries patrol boat it was a
joke: for it was the only coal-
burning vessel on the lake,

and its tell-tale column of

black smoke betrayed its
presence before ever it came

over the horizon to seek the

naughty fisherman.) ~

Then there was the tourist
boat, the s.s. Kenora, that
made a weekly trip during
July and August only,
bringing tourists on a six-day,
700 mile excursion round the
lake. Many of these tourists
were young school teachers,
and many were Americans,
loaded down with snow-shoes
and fleecy long-johns against

the rigours of ‘Canadian

weather in July. These brief
visits from Outside made us
restless, and when Kenora left
at the end of August we settled
down. again to be our own
company for another ten
months.

Lastly there was the s.s.

to carry freight. Like the
Kenora she was necessarily of

August when the Kenora could

but had to hug a lee shore on
the other side of the lake. That
was not too serious.

The natives simply missed a
lot of laughs and a few sales of
beaded moccasins or
miniature birchbark canoes or
baskets, and the tourists went

somewhere else. But when the '

supply ship could not get in,

Bear in mind, too, that we
had no way of phoning out to
see whether the ship was on its
way, or not yet started, or not
coming at all. We could write
out by next month’s mail, and
get an answer the month after
that; but by then the lake

and the ship certainly would
not come.
MAGIC FEAT

Christmas seemed to
pounce on us very quickly
after we arrived at Grand
Rapids, and we found we were
expected to provide some sort
of Christmas gifts for a
hundred and fifty children and
a good many widows and old
folk. The previous missionary
had always done so, we were
told, But the previous
missionary was dead, and we
had no means of asking him by
what magic he performed the
feat,

By the second Christmas we
had made contact with our
bishop, and he with a branch

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48 Crease

| difficult. We passed the hat

the

TIRED ROOF?

of the Woman’s Auxiliary of
his diocese, and from then our
troubles were over — almost.
But the first Christmas was

among the local people, and
raised the noble sum of $15. It
does not sound much but you
must remember that we, with
our assured $50 a month
salary were regarded as
bloated capitalists ... nobody
else had an assured income at
all. The $15 we sent on the
October mail to Eaton’s in
Winnipeg, and Eaton’s
responded with the generosity
we used to expect of them in
those days, and sent us some
200 toys as well as a few bits of
shop-worn clothing for adults
by the December mail.

Our bishop, too, was able to
send us some still-serviceable
quilts and used garfhents,

and, of course, we found
things .among our own
possessions that we did not
absolutely need. In the end our.
Christmas tree was
adequately decked, but it was
an anxious time until then,.
with always the fear that.
somebody would get.
overlooked — a baby born on:
Christmas Eve, perhaps, or an
old grannie who had been
away visiting another reserve

and come home
Actually, New Year’s Day

was celebrated more than
Christmas, due no doubt to the
preponderance of Scots
among the Hudson’s Bay
Company factors. The custom
was for the men folk to start
out about 4 o’clock on New
‘Year’s morning, and begin to
call at every house, kissing all
the ladies and then sitting
down to a meal.

I remember Mosquito, an
old man in his eighties who
used to play the fiddle for the
dances until his knees got too

house about noon, and I of-
fered him the customary
snack, but he said,
you. I have had breakfast
seventeen times already
today. I don’t think I am
_ hungry. aa

"My ~poor™ husband: handed:
“the ‘old ‘chap his. tin.’of Old

sent as a Christmas present.
Mosquito thanked him and
filled his pipe and set the tin on
the floor beside his chair.
Presently a gloopy sound from
the pipe was followed by the
old man’s need to spit, and he

the moss-filled tin that is
every ready beside his chair
at home. Yes, you guessed it.
Good-bye Ray’s s Christmas
smoke! ‘. -

Later in the morning, say
about 8, the children set out on
their round of visits, each
carrying an old flour sack,
just as our children do on
Hallowe’en. And then the
ladies get their turn, after
they have received and fed
every.man they expect. The
day is called in Cree
Oochamitoowe _ keesikow,
which means “Kissing Day”,
Hubby says.

y

“ah

ye

stiff (if you have ever watched ,
Stompin’ Tom, you'll know |
what I mean). He reached our "

“Thank |

‘Chum tobacco he had been —

reached absent-mindedly for .

On Shrove Tuesday we

decided that we would give the
members of the Woman’s
Auxiliary a party at our home,
so I cooked a couple of
haunches of deer meat (that
. was plentiful that year, for a

change), rice, potatoes and
split peas, with cakes and Jell-
o for dessert.

The women came in dif-
fidently, with exclamations of
wonder at our modest table-
setting (much of it wedding
presents, being used for the
first time). It did look good, if
I say it myself! Ray said
Grace, we sat them all down
and invited them to hop to it.
But they were shy; so Ray and
I made an excuse to disappear
briefly into the kitchen to
make the tea. While wer were
away those few minutes
everything eatable had
disappeared from the table, so
we filled the dishes again, and
the second round disappeared
the minute our backs were
turned.

It was all very mystifying.
When we came to understand
Indian protocol we un-
derstood. We had set those
noble women a real problem
of etiquette. According to

native manners it would be.

rude to refuse anything set

before them. On the other -

hand, many of our concoctions
were not to their taste at all;
nor could a mere dozen
women consume all the food
we insisted on setting before
them.

So, for want of doggie bags,
most of the food was tipped
down into recesses in the
clothing, and so conveyed
secretly home, where its
disgorging must have been a

had been preserved.’
WINTER SUPPLIES

I have said that we took in
with us all our own supplies
for the winter. But, what with
miscalculating the quantities
we should need, and all this
riotous feasting going on,
those supplies were getting
very low by. the end of May.
Never mind, the freight boat
was due in early June. But, for

a reason we never learned (or

10 AM. -

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A-ply polyostor for smooth riding |

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VANCOUVER ISLAND REGIONAL LIBRARY'S 2aTu

Winter companion for all belted tires

y For YOUR CAR OR TRUCK

if we did, have forgotten) the

Wolverine failed to make that
trip.

We put ourselves on strict:
rations. The little local store
had nothing to sell but baking
soda and baking powder (and
nothing to bake!) and to send
a canoe to The Pas and back,
300 miles, was beyond our
resources. So we tightened our
belts a little and made do with
two meals a day. What we had
most of was rice and cheese,
nutritious but monotonous.
Came the day when we ate our
last slice of bread and drank
our last cup of tea and sat and
looked at one another won-
dering what happened next.

What happened was that a
girl came running excitedly,
shouting something. Ray went
out to enquire what all the
noise was about and was told,
“The steamboat’s coming!
The steamboat’s coming!’’

But where? We peered out into

the lake for two hours and still
saw no sign of it.

However, the messenger
insisted that her father had
been out fishing and had seen
its smoke on the horizon. Was
he sure that it was coming to
Grand Rapids, though? Or
was that wishful thinking? He
was sure, and four hours later
the Kenora came in sight. The
river bank at the dock was
carpeted with eager natives,
hungry for whatever the boat
could spare them of food. Ray,
I think would like to have been
with them, but I was not going
to appear a beggar: I would
wait at a dignified distance
until our supplies had been
landed.

So I took Ray very firmly for
a long walk, away from the
dock. Presently we met the

ship’s purser on the road. He |

hailed us: ‘The Captain’s
thought, ‘“‘that’s to sign the
manifest for our supplies,”
and we hurried back to the
ship. But the captain had no
supplies for us. He told us,
though, that it was traditional

for the missionaries to dine
courtesy of the °
company, the first trip of each 3]
summer into Grand Rapids. --.

‘Welcome Central
Saanich!

COME FOR COFFEE
AT OUR NEW
‘BRENTWOOD LIBRARY

OPEN HOUSE
Sat. Jan. 10, 1976

aboard,

5 PM.

SPECIALIZING

WINDOW & FLOOR |

looking for you.” “Ah,” we. §

Fresh fruit and vegetables,
fresh bread and real butter,
and coffee! Afterwards the
captain told us that he would
take our mislaid grocery
order to Winnipeg, if we would
give him a copy, and per-
sonally make sure that it was
loaded the following Monday
to be delivered to us. Mean-
while he presented us with a
few glorious things from the
ship’s store: bread, and milk,
and candy, potatoes and,
above all, green vegetables.

You may ask, What did the
Indians eat that winter? The
answer is, very little. Meat
was scarce after the spring
thaw, and fish had been scarce
all winter. We had no
refrigeration with which to

keep any excess of venison

Building Maintenance:

AJAX

Home and Office Cleaners.
Complete Janitorial Ser-
| vice. | Free Estimates

656-1278

STREAKLESS CLEANERS

iN; HOME
CLEANING’
‘WINDOWS: ‘FLOORS:
KGUTTERS _WALLS
ICONSTRUCTION CLEAN-UP]
SERVICES
TORY MILLS _
2260 ‘WEILER AVENUE

SIDNEY, 8.C.:
PHONE 656-3775

"MARSHALL'S

ICLEANING SERVICE
“PAINT WASHING
PHONE 383-7942.

Chiropractors,

GHIROPRAGTOR

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PHONE 656-4915

Sidney Roofing »
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Roofers — "Budget "Prices
Free. ‘Estimate

~” CUSTOM HOMES _

| ALTERATIONSFRAMING

[carpet .

J odd Jobs F Free: Entimates -

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_ Masonry Contractor
RBRICK-BLOCK- “STONE

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8003 Alex Rond, Saanichton *

at

"PHONE 052-2254 —

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TRACTOR SERVICE
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Plough — Post Holes
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use the
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for ~4369

ANDY the HANDYMAN] |

there might have been earlier
in the winter, once the thaw
had come. A few ducks flew
over, winging their way north,
and even a few geese, but
Grand Rapids is not on any
major fly-way, and few of the
birds found their way to table.

For the old folk there were -
the rations my husband had to
dispense fortnightly on behalf.
of the Indian Department, side
bacon, blue outside with
mould and yellow inside with
age; flour; half a pound of
tea; and sometimes a little .
rice, or maybe. beans,
depending on which was on
sale when the Government
went shopping.

All the community shared in
these bounties, of course, for
no Indian will feed himself |

while another is hungry. And
for the children there was
some sort of a hot lunch in
school — it might be porridge,
or beans, or rice — at noon of
every school day, as I have

this series.

| Contractors Electrical.
-:Thorne-Lennon-
Electric.
Industrial « Residential
- Commercial Wiring
Poles and Line Work

DK

CONSTRUCTION
LID |

General Contractors

CARPORTS
ADDITIONS:
SIDEWALKS
_& FENCING.

Free Estimates,

652-3536

“QUALITY WORKSMANSHIP

PHONE 656-2945
SIDNEY

‘Optometiists: 7
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CLOSED
MONDAY:

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6662713:

(ASA. BUILDERS L1D.]
General Contracting

For the Peninsula, Phone:
KURT STRICKER
_For Free Estimates

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developments Itd..

BUILDING, QUALITY.
PLUMBING, . HOME }
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Back-Hoe Work, F
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Phone 656- -3556:

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No ie too spill?

656-5604 \"

‘SHERWOOD'S;
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Page 9

Poverty was real, but we
were all poor together, and as
a rule we did not mind it. But

‘ one man said to me one day,

when I was suggesting he buy
some trifling thing, ‘‘ten cents
is a lot of money when you
haven’t got it’. ‘

656-3621

: Painting & Decorators
‘M.J. SUTHERLAND

‘Painting & Paperhanging |
Decorating

Phone 656-f41
GORDON OREN
*Paittting & Decorating
Wall Coverings.

Free Estimates
__ 656-4397
Groceries -
COLLINS’
-MARKET.
Best Quality Meat:
_ and Groceries «

2835"'Amity Dr. °
‘Cor, Pat ;Bay Hwy.

{] 510200 :a.m_! ti11:7500'p.m: |

Cigsed Sundays & Mondays

“Miscellaneous ~
SEWING MACHINE
REPAIRS. :
For service:and repairs to alk
Emakes of Sewing Machines. 2!
years experience. Complete
check-up, cleaning, oiling.
$10.00 also buy & sell.: al
6195.

RENOVATIONS
Carpentry punishing or
Rough
Painting Spray or Brush
Masonry Rock or Brick. |

| COM-PAK Cabinets |
Specializing in new {
cabinets and also refacing }
‘of existing cabinets at
substantial savings. Phone |
656-5772 or 656-6495 Eves.
Free Estimates.

SERVICES

Hull Cleaning Ete.
‘& Recovery
. Free Estimates

Rich Ireland 656- 4185

R. & P Janitor
Service

_ Floor Care - Windows -

Carpet Shampoo

Complore! Service

STORRS: “OFFICES
>HOMES|

"650-2444

Gurney Instruments.

Maring, radlo,. radar, auto

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industrial process. control;
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tronic

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656-8703.

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HOUSE OF LIGIITS
0732 First St, Sidne

Occupying Uncle Dudloy’s
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650-0215

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a