The White Chief of the Ottawa

. . . By . . .

Bertha Wright Carr-Harris

With seven full-page illustrations by John Innes

TORONTO WILLIAM BRIGGS 1903

Entered according to Act of the Parliament of Canada, in the year one thousand nine hundred and three, by BERTHA WRIGHT CARR-HARRIS, at the Department of Agriculture.

PREFACE.

"The White Chief of the Ottawa" is not fiction. It is not a tale with a carefully concealed plot, meant to delude the reader at the beginning and to surprise him at the end. It is something stranger than fiction, a sketch of the life experiences of Philemon Wright and his family, the first settlers in the district of Ottawa. With the exception of the love of Abbie and Chrissy, which are based upon fact, the story is mainly a simple recital of actual facts which cannot be controverted.

The writer is indebted to the following for furnishing valuable data:

Diary and letters of Philemon Wright, 1806-1816.

Bouchette's Topographical Report.

"Travels in the North"—Sir Alexander Mackenzie, 1803.

"Three Years in Canada"—McTaggart, 1830.

"Shoe and Canoe"—Dr. Bigsby.

Parkman's History of Canada.

Also to traditions of old settlers collected at various times and places. May some of the pictures set forth in these pages inspire us with an ever-deepening appreciation of the self-sacrifice, the energy, the enterprise, of those whose loyalty to the British Crown led them to penetrate the dark recesses of our Canadian forests and brave the trials and vicissitudes of pioneer life.

To these conquering heroes Canada owes much of her prosperity and greatness.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER

I.—A Weird Ceremony II.—The White Chief III.—Newitchewagan IV.—An Indian Suitor V.—Chrissy VI.—Gay Voyageurs VII.—"A Ministering Angel, Thou" VIII.—Convent Days IX.—The New Tutor X.—Tobacco Offerings XI.—Snares XII.—Mrs. Bancroft's Sugaring Off XIII.—Accidental and Confidential XIV.—Machecawa Scalps the Englishman XV.—A Romantic Wedding XVI.—A Perilous Journey XVII.—A Double Tragedy XVIII.—An Exciting Moose Hunt XIX.—After Many Days XX.—Found Out XXI.—Rideau Hall in the Thirties XXII.—Light at Eventide

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

Philemon Wright and Mrs. Wright ... Frontispiece

"He stood there, a colossal statue in bronze"

"Oh, Machecawa, my brother, it is not well that you grieve"

"Soon twelve canoes rounded the headland"

"When Martin came up I went down"

Hon. Louis Joseph Papineau and Madame Papineau

"The Chief proceeded to throw the tobacco into the Chaudiere"

Colonel By

"I remained behind the tree, dodging round"

Hon. Thomas MacKay

The White Chief of the Ottawa.

CHAPTER I. A WEIRD CEREMONY.

1800.

"De Beeg Chief he want to know, heem, by what autorité you fellers, you, cut down hees wood and tak' hees lan'?"

The speaker was a trapper named Brown, who had been in the employ of the Hudson's Bay Company for many years, and, though English by birth, spoke a mixed dialect, owing to his association with French trappers and traders and to the influence of his squaw wife. He had, however, retained a sufficient knowledge of English to be able to act as interpreter.

"Tell him," replied the leader of a group of settlers, "that the great father who lives on the other side of the water and Sir John Johnson, of Quebec, have authorized us to take this land."

"He say, heem," continued the interpreter, as he squirted the juices of his quid on the bronze carpet of pine needles, "dat you must tink dat dese chute and reever he want for hees beesnesse, an hees papoose she want eat someteeng. He want dis place, heem, pour chasse le mooshrat an' de moose, mak' le soucre an' ketch de feesh, an' hees afeard dat you tak' hees beaver, kill hees deer, break hees sucreries. You cut down hees tree for shure you kill hees beesnesse."

"The tools and materials we brought," replied the stranger, "are not for hunting or fishing, but for clearing land, and we shall endeavour to protect your beaver and fishing-grounds; but as for the sugaries, we must make use of them, because the land has already been given us, and if you will collect all your materials for making sugar we shall pay cash for them."

"De Beeg Chief he say," continued Brown, "dat white man seem bien bon, an' dat he will be so wit heem, an' if he pay cinq Louis he am geeve up all claim to de lan'."

"Very well," said the stranger, "we shall pay them thirty pounds if they will produce a deed or title to the lands."

"He comprends pas,"* said the interpreter. "L'agrement she was mak wit de fadder of hees fadder."

* Understands not.

Drawing a paper from his pocket the stranger read as follows:

"The Indians have consented to relinquish all claim to the land, in compensation for which they receive annual grants from the Government, which shall be withheld if they molest settlers."

For a time no one spoke, then the Big Chief, in a calm, deliberate and thoughtful manner, addressed the interpreter, who said:

"For shure he dunno, heem, how white man mak' dat papier hear an' speak dem words of long tam. Dis man he hav' someteeng dat he comprends pas."

A long consultation then took place among the dusky sons of the forest, and once more the interpreter turned to the stranger and said:

"Our tribe she tink like dis—Eenglishman he got someteeng he comprends pas at all; mabbe, he say, she wan beeg loup garou* and he tink it am better to be bon ami an' leeve in de sam' place dan be bad ennemi; so he am mak' you chief an' be de bess frien'."

* An indescribable monster, supposed to have supernatural powers.

The words were hardly finished when the Big Chief Machecawa (the strong one) advanced with slow and stately tread and implanted a kiss on the brow of the stranger. The Chief was a man in the prime of life, of great height and strength. As he stood there, still and motionless, he looked like a colossal statue in bronze, a perfect model, from his feathered head-dress to his beaded moccasins. He was followed by several subordinate chiefs who did likewise.

"He stood there, a colossal statue in bronze."

The Chief then spread a piece of well-dressed moose-skin, neatly painted, before him on the ground, upon which he opened a curious skin bag containing several mysterious looking articles, the principal one being a small carved image about eight inches long. Its first covering was of down, over which a piece of birch bark was closely tied, and the whole was enveloped in several folds of red and blue cloth. This little figure was evidently an object of the most pious regard. The next article taken from the bag was his war cap, which was decorated with feathers and plumes of rare birds, the claws of beaver, eagles, etc. Suspended from it was a quill for every enemy whom the owner had slain in battle. The remaining contents of the bag were a piece of tobacco and a pipe.

These articles all being exposed, and the stem of the pipe arranged upon two forks so as not to touch the ground, Machecawa motioned to his white brother to sit down opposite to him. The pipe was then filled and attached to the stem. A pair of wooden pinchers was provided to put fire into it. All arrangements having been completed, the Indians gathered round in a circle, awe and solemnity pervading all, while a subordinate chief, O'Jawescawa, took up the pipe, lighted it, and presented it to Machecawa, who received it standing and held it between both hands. He then turned to the east and drew a few whiffs which he blew to that point. The same ceremony was performed to the other three quarters, with his eyes directed upward during the whole of it. Then holding the stem about the middle between the three first fingers of both hands, and raising them upon a line with his forehead, he swung it three times round from the east with the sun, when, after pointing and balancing it in various directions, he laid it upon the forks. He then made a speech acknowledging

past mercies and expressing the confidence that the blessing of peace would attend all their dealings with the stranger, upon whom he would now confer the title of "Wabisca Onodis," the White Chief.

He then sat down, while the whole company declared their approbation and thanks by uttering the word "Ho," with an emphatic prolongation of the last letter.

O'Jawescawa then took up the pipe and held it to the mouth of Machecawa, who, after smoking three whiffs out of it, uttered a short prayer and then went round with it, taking his course from east to west, to every man present, both Indians and white men, who could confidently affirm that they entertained no grudge against any of the assembled party, until the pipe was smoked out, when, after turning it three or four times round his head, he dropped it downwards and replaced it in its original position.

Machecawa then approached the stranger and the little band who were with him and uttered a short guttural sound, which the interpreter said meant, "Come and eat."

To refuse would be a grave offence, so the invitation was accepted by all, who followed the Big Chief through a narrow and winding path, which led to a small lake midway between the Gatineau River and the Chaudiere Falls. They arranged themselves in front of a number of huts made of bent boughs, some of which were covered with bark and some with deerskin, securely sewed and stretched tight as a drum. Following the example of the Indians they squatted on the ground in a circle.

Surrounded by a chattering group of squaws sat Newitchewagan, the wife of the Chief, with a child between her knees, while she hunted through the jungle of his hair with destroying thumb and finger. One old squaw, who was kneeling under a tree rubbing and twisting a moccasin between her hands, paused to fill her mouth with water, which she spurted in repeated jets over the moccasin. A little papoose, strapped to a flat piece of wood about three feet long spread with soft moss, was suspended to a branch of a tree. It crowed and laughed quite merrily as it was swayed to and fro by the cold wind. While the feast was in course of preparation the new Chief and his friends were entertained by songs of a most melancholy nature.

It was a strange scene that presented itself that cold and frosty evening in March. The snow-drifts were covered with a crust of frozen sleet, which crunched beneath the tread of moccasined feet. The bare branches of the maples were encased in ice, with long icicles attached, which glistened and reflected like a prism the rays of the setting sun. Small troughs of basswood, hollowed out in the middle by burning, stood at the trunk of almost every tree to catch the sap, which had ceased to run for several days owing to the "cold snap" which had taken place in the weather.

"How do you make sugar without pots?" asked the new Chief of the interpreter.

Pointing to a green hardwood stump he explained, in broken English, that the squaws burned a deep hole in the centre, into which they poured the sap which they had gathered. Stones heated on the fire were then dropped into the wooden cauldron, which caused the sap to boil. This operation was repeated until it was reduced to sugar.

There was little variation in the dress of the grotesque figures gathered round the fire. All had strips of deerskin tightly bound round their legs instead of trousers, and which were never removed unless to replace with new ones. Two aprons, one behind and one before, were fastened around their waist by girdles. Short shirts made of skin were fastened at the neck and arms, and were removed while portaging or paddling. They had very little hair—only a tuft on the top of the head, which was stuck full of feathers, wings and shells. Not a man among them could boast of a beard. The squaws were dressed in much the same fashion, except that the aprons were a trifle longer than those worn by the men, and their coarse black hair floated in the breeze.

Soon a young squaw drew from the ashes the charred remains of fully a score of partridges, which had not been divested of feathers nor cleaned internally. On removing the outer covering of charred feathers and ashes, she laid one for each man present before the Big Chief, who, with great solemnity, cast the first one into the fire as a sacrifice to the Great Spirit, the Master of Life. Pieces of bear-steak, which had been sizzling before the fire, were then served, while the Chief entertained his guests with strange monotonous songs, accompanied by the "shishiquoi," or rattle.

Full justice having been done to these and other Indian delicacies, Machecawa addressed the new Chief, the interpretation of his remarks being as follows:

"Our white brother will never inspire his enemies with feelings of awe or fear if he does not wear war-paint. Will the white-faced stranger consent to let us use our brush so as to make him such an object of terror that even his enemies will flee from him?"

"No! No!! No!!!" said the new Chief. "Soot and grease and ochre are for Indians, not for white men."

Whereupon the Indian said: "It is the custom of our chiefs to chose a manitou, who will protect them in times of danger and who will give them success in the chase."

"Tell them," replied the new Chief, "that the white man's Manitou is a Great Spirit whom we call 'Our Father,' and he saves and keeps and protects us by night and by day."

"Will the new Chief then permit us to graven on his body the form of this Great Spirit?"

"The form of the Spirit has been engraven on my body," he replied, "when He created me in His likeness."

The little group of settlers observed that a white dog, the mystic animal of many tribes, was being tied to the end of an upright pole. Presently the Chief, in a loud voice, began to pray to the 'Great Spirit Father,' the new Chief's Manitou, begging Him to accept the living sacrifice about to be offered. The Indians then rushed upon the animal in a state of frenzy and began to devour the raw, quivering flesh. This weird ceremony was a mystery to the assembled whites, and remained a mystery for some time.

This concluded the ceremonies of the day, and the new Chief and his friends returned to their shanties on the banks of the Ottawa, near the western point of the Gatineau, loaded with glory and Indian hospitality.

CHAPTER II. THE WHITE CHIEF.

1800.

The hero of our sketch, Philemon Wright, was a man forty years of age. In appearance he was of a strong, broad build, and stood six feet in his stockings. A wealth of flaxen hair was brushed straight back from a high and noble brow. His face was profoundly meditative. Thick eyebrows shaded the eyes, which were wonderfully quick, observant and penetrating. His features indicated goodness and energy, strength of will and determination. His muscles were the envy of all who felt them.

Like all superior men, Philemon Wright nourished long his projects, but decision once made he set himself to realize them with ardor, obstacles only serving to intensify his energy, for he employed all the resources of his spirit and inflexible will to triumph over them. He was a worthy descendant of the men of Kent who followed Harold to victory through difficulties which to others would have been insurmountable.

His father, Thomas Wright, having sold his estates in Kent, settled in Woburn, twenty miles from Boston, in 1760, where Philemon, the fifth and youngest son, was born shortly afterwards. While a mere lad of fifteen he saw active service in the Revolutionary War, in the vicinity of Boston and New York, taking up arms as a British subject against the short-sighted rulers of the Motherland in the vain hope of wresting from them the rights which the revolutionists considered were their due.

Philemon married, at twenty-two, a Miss Wyman, of Irish descent, whose grand-nephews, Rufus and Joseph Choate, have since played so conspicuous a place in the drama of American history, and had seven promising children, who were known familiarly as Phil, Bearie, Chrissy, Abbie, Christie, Mary and Rug.

Philemon Wright was a man of indomitable courage, enterprise, industry and perseverance, and had acquired considerable property in the neighborhood of Boston. Finding a better market in Canada for farm produce, he went every fall to Montreal, and in 1796 determined to go on a tour of exploration on the Grand River, or the Utawas, as the Ottawa was then called.

A few settlements then existed for the first forty-five miles, up to the Long Sault Rapids, but beyond this point the seventy-five or eighty miles was a complete wilderness. He found that this part of the country was entirely unknown to the inhabitants of Montreal, excepting, of course, to the employees of the two great fur-trading companies, though its immense resources of fine timber were, he said, "sufficient to furnish supplies for any foreign market, even to load one thousand vessels."

Prominent members of the fur companies in Montreal drew his attention to their printed report, which stated that there was not five hundred acres of arable land on the extensive banks of the whole river.

"It may be to your interests to keep the Grand River from becoming settled," he said, "but you may bet your best beaver-skin on this, that there is at least five hundred thousand acres of uncleared land fit for cultivation on the banks of the Grand River."

In 1797 he again visited Canada, and examined the country from Quebec to Montreal, on both sides of the St. Lawrence, and then up the Ottawa as far as the Chaudiere Falls, studying carefully the navigation of the Ottawa, and its fitness for settlement.

In 1798 this enterprising but cautious man paid his third visit to his future home, and returned to Massachusetts with a full determination to commence a settlement. He failed, however, to inspire his neighbors with his own confidence in the scheme, and he therefore selected two respectable men from among them, and hired them to go with him the following summer to examine and report on what they saw. Their report, which was afterwards published in the Canadian Magazine of September, 1824, is as follows:

"We spent twenty days in October in exploring the Township of Hull. We climbed to the top of one hundred or more trees to view the situation of the country, which we accomplished in the following manner: We cut smaller trees in such a way as to fall slanting and to lodge in the branches of the larger ones, which we ascended until we arrived at the top. By this means we were enabled to view the country and also the timber, and by the timber we could judge the nature of the soil, which we found to answer our expectations. After having examined well the nature of the township, we descended the river and arrived, after much fatigue, at Montreal."

The report was so satisfactory to the people of Woburn that Mr. Wright was able to hire as many as he wished for the new settlement.

It was fully five hundred miles from Woburn to the Chaudiere, but the nineteenth century was hardly a month old when the little band braved the journey. Their leader assumed all risks himself, and with twenty-five men, five families, having a membership of thirty, fourteen horses, eight oxen, and seven sleighs loaded with mill irons, agricultural implements, carpenters' tools, household effects, provisions, left the quiet New England village. The route taken was the old stage road from Boston to Montreal, which passed through Woburn to Haverhill, thence to Concord, thence north-westward along the shore of Lake Memphremagog to Montreal, which was reached on the ninth day.