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Saddle, Sled and
Snowshoe
Pioneering on the Saskatchewan in the sixties, By John McDougall |
Contents
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Chapter I.
Old Fort Edmonton—Early missionaries—Down the Saskatchewan by
dog-train—Camp-fire experiences —Arrival at home—Daily occupations
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Chapter II.
A foraging expedition—Our hungry camp—A welcome feast—Dogs, sleds and
buffalo bull in a tangle—In a Wood Cree encampment—Chief Child,
Maskepetoon and Ka-kake—Indian hospitality—Incidents of the return trip
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Chapter III.
Scarcity of food—The winter packet—Start for Edmonton for the eastern
mails—A lonely journey— Arrive at Fort Edmonton--Start for home—Camping
in a storm—Improvising a "Berlin"—Old Draffan—Sleeping on a dog-sled en
route—A hearty welcome home
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Chapter IV.
Trip to Whitefish Lake—Mr. Woolsey as a dog-driver- Rolling down a side
hill—Another trip to Edmonton—Mr. O. B. as a passenger—Perils of travel
by ice—Narrow escape of Mr. O. B. —A fraud exposed —Profanity
punished—Arrival at Edmonton— Milton and Cheadle—Return to Victoria
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Chapter V.
Mr. Woolsey's ministrations—An exciting foot-race - Building operations
—Garden ing—Stolon (?) buffalo tongues—Addled duck eggs as a relish—A
lesson in cooking—A lucky shot—Precautions against hostile Indians
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Chapter VI.
The summer brigade—With the brigade down the Saskatchewan—A glorious
panorama—Meet with father and mother on the way to Victoria—Privtions of
travel—A buffalo crossing—Arrival a Victoria—A church building begun—
Peter Eramus as interpreter
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Chapter VII.
In search of the Stoneys—An Indian avenger—A Sunday at Fort
Edmonton—Drunken Lake carousals— Indian trails—Canyon of the Red Deer—I
shoot my father—Amateur surgeons —Prospecting for gold—Peter gets
"rattled "—A mysterious shot— Friends or foes?—Noble specimens of the
Indian race—A "kodak" needed—Among the Stoneys - Prospecting for a
mission site—A massacre of neophytes—An Indian patriarch—Back at
Victoria again
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Chapter VIII.
Provisions diminishing—A buffalo hunt organized— Oxen and Red River
carts—Our "buffalo runners" —Meet with Maskepetoon—Maskepetoon shakes
hands with his son's murderer—An Indian's strange vow—Instance of Indian
watchfulness—"Who Talks Past-All-Things "—Come upon the buffalo— An
exciting charge—Ki-you-ken-os races the buffalo —Peter's exciting
adventure—Buffalo dainties-Return home—War parties—Indian curiosity—
Starving Young Bull's "dedication feast "—Missionary labors
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Chapter IX.
The fall fishing—A relentless tooth-ache—Prairie and forest
fire—Attacked by my dogs—A run home— A sleepless night—Father turns
dentist—Another visit to Edmonton—Welcome relief—Final revenge on my
enemy
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Chapter X.
Casual visitors—The missionary a "medicine man ""Hardy dogs and hardier
men "—A buffalo hunt organized—"Make a fire! I am freezing! " —I thaw
out my companion—Chief Child—Father caught napping—Go with Mr. Woolsey
to Edmonton— Encounter between Blackfeet and Stoneys—A "nightmare"
scare—My passenger scorched—Rolling down hill—Translating hymns
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Chapter XI.
Visited by the Wood Stoneys—"Muddy Bull "—A noble Indian
couple—Remarkable shooting—Tom and I have our first and only
disagreement—A race with loaded dog-sleds--Chased by a wounded buffalo
bull—My swiftest foot-race—Building a palisade around our mission
home—Bringing in seed potatoes
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Chapter XII.
Mr. Woolsey's farewell visit to Edmonton—Preparing for a trip to Fort
Garry—Indians gathering into our valley—Fight between Creos and
BlackfeetThe "strain of possible tragedy "—I start for Fort Garry—Joined
by Ka-kake—Sabbath observance— A camp of Saulteaux—An excited Indian—I
dilate on the numbers and resources of the white man— We pass Duck
Lake—A bear hunt—" Loaded for b'ar "—A contest in athletics—Whip-poor-willsPancakes
and maple syrup—Pass the site of Birtle —My first and only difference
with Ka-kake
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Chapter XIII.
Fall in with a party of "plain hunters "—Marvellous resources of this
great country—A "hunting breed" —Astounding ignorance—Visit a Church of
England mission—Have my first square meal of bread and butter in two
years—Archdeacon Cochrane— Unexpected sympathy with rebellion and
slavery —Through the White Horse Plains—Baptiste's recklessness and its
punishment—Reach our destination—Present my letter of introduction to
Governor McTavish—Purchasing supplies—" Hudson's Bay blankets "—Old Fort
Garry, St. Boniface, Winnipeg, St. John's, Kildonan—A "degenerate"
Scot—An eloquent Indian preacher—Baptiste succumbs to his old
enemy—Prepare for our return journey
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Chapter XIV.
We start for home—A stubborn cow—Difficulties of transport—Indignant
travellers—Novel method of breaking a horse—Secure provisions at Fort
Ellice —Lose one of our cows—I turn detective—Dried meat and fresh cream
as a delicacy
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Chapter XV.
Personnel of our party—My little rat terrier has a novel experience—An
Indian horse-thief's visit by night —I shoot and wound him—An exciting
chase— Saved by the vigilance of my rat terrier—We reach the South
Branch of the Saskatchewan—A rushing torrent—A small skin canoe our only
means of transport—Mr. Connor's fears of drowning—Get our goods over
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Chapter XVI.
A raft of carts—The raft swept away—Succeed in recovering it—Getting our
stock over—The emotionless Scot unbends—Our horses wander away— Track
them up—Arrive at Canton—Crossing the North Saskatchewan—Homes for the
millions— Fall in with father and Peter—Am sent home for fresh horses—An
exhilarating gallop—Home again
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Chapter XVII.
Improvements about home—Mr. Woolsey's departure— A zealous and
self-sacrificing missionary—A travelling college-1 feel a twinge of
melancholy—A lesson in the luxury of happiness—Forest and prairie
fire—Father's visit to the Mountain Stoneys —Indians gathering about our
mission—Complications feared
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Chapter XVIII.
Mask e pet o on - Council gatherings - Maskepetoon's childhood—" Royal
born by right Divine "—A father's advice—An Indian philosopher—Maskepethou
as "Peace Chief '—Forgives his father's murderer—Arrival of Rev. R. T.
Rundle—Stephen and Joseph—Stephen's eloquent harangue—Joseph's hunting
exploits—Types of the shouting Methodist and the High Church ritualist
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Chapter XIX.
Muh-ka-chees, or "the Fox "—An Indian "dude "—A strange story—How the
Fox was transforthed—Mr. The-Camp-is-Moving as a magician
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Chapter XX.
Victoria becomes a Hudson's Bay trading post—An adventure on a raft—The
annual fresh meat hunt organized—Among the buffalo—Oliver misses his
shot and is puzzled—My experience with a runaway horse—A successful
hunt—My "bump of locality" surprises Peter—Home again
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Chapter XXI.
Father and I visit Fort Edmonton—Peter takes to himself a wife—Mr.
Connor becomes school teacher— First school In that part of the
country—Culinary operations—Father decides to open a mission at Pigeon
Lake—I go prospecting—Engage a Roman Catholic guide—Our guide's sudden
"illness"— Through new scenes—Reach Pigeon Lake—Getting out timber for
building—Incidents of return trip
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Chapter XXII.
Another buffalo hunt—Visit Maskepetoon's camp—The old chief's plucky
deed—Arrival of a peace party from the Blackfeet—A "peace dance
"—Buffalo in plenty—Our mysterious visitor—A party of Black- feet come
upon us—Watching and praying—Arrive home with well-loaded
sleds—Christmas festivities
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Chapter XXIII.
We set out with Maskepetoon for the Blackfoot camp —A wife for a
target—Indian scouts—Nearing the Blackfeet—Our Indians don paint and
feathers—A picture of the time and place—We enter the Blackfoot
camp—Three Bulls—Buffalo Indians—Father describes eastern
civilization—The Canadian Government's treatment of the Indians a
revelation—I am taken by a war chief as a hostage—Mine host and his
seven wives—Bloods and Piegans—I witness a great dance—We leave for
home—A sprained ankle—Arrival at the mission
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Chapter XXIV.
We visit the Cree camp—I lose Maple and the pups— Find our Indian
friends "pound-keeping "—The Indian buffalo pound—Consecrating the
pound— Mr. Who-Brings-Them-In—Running the buffalo in —The herd safely
corralled—Wholesale slaughter —Apportioning the hunt—Finis
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