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T H E T R I P T O W A H P O O S K O W 139
down," given i n our honour by the local community. It
took place i n a building put up by a M r . George, an Engl
i sh catechist of the Mission; a solid structure of logs of
some length, ' the roof poles being visible above the peeled
beams. On one of these five or six candles were alight, fastened
to it by simply sticking them into some melted tallow.
There were two fiddlers and a crowd of half- breeds, of elders,
youths, girls and matrons, the latter squatting on the floor
with their babes i n moss- bags, dividing the delights of the
evening between nursing and dancing, both of which were
conducted with the utmost propriety. Indeed, it was interesting
to see so many pretty women and well- behaved men
brought together i n this out- of- theworld place. The dances
were the customary reels, and, of course, the Red River J i g .
I was sorry, however, to notice a so- called improvement upon
this historic dance; that is to say, they doubled the numbers
engaged in it, and called it " The Wahpooskow J i g . " It
seemed a dangerous innovation; and the introduction later
on of a cotillon with the usual dreary and mechanical calls
filled one with additional forebodings. We almost heard
" the first low wash of waves where soon shall flow a human
sea." But aside from such newfangled features, there was
nothing to criticise. The fiddling was good, and the dancing
was good, showing the usual expertness, in which performance
the women stooped their shoulders gracefully, and bent
their brows modestly upon the floor, whilst the men vied
with each other i n the admirable and complicated variety of
their steps. In fact, it was an evening very agreeably spent,
and not the less so from its primitive envh- onnient. After
joining i n a reel of eight, we left the scene with reluctance,
the memorable J i g suddenly striking on our ears as we
wended our way i n the darkness to our camp.
As regards farming land in the region, for a long way
inland Mr. Weaver and others described it as of the like
good quality as at the Mission, but with much muskeg. It
is difficult to estimate the extent of the latter, for, being
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| Title | Page 160 |
| OCR | T H E T R I P T O W A H P O O S K O W 139 down," given i n our honour by the local community. It took place i n a building put up by a M r . George, an Engl i sh catechist of the Mission; a solid structure of logs of some length, ' the roof poles being visible above the peeled beams. On one of these five or six candles were alight, fastened to it by simply sticking them into some melted tallow. There were two fiddlers and a crowd of half- breeds, of elders, youths, girls and matrons, the latter squatting on the floor with their babes i n moss- bags, dividing the delights of the evening between nursing and dancing, both of which were conducted with the utmost propriety. Indeed, it was interesting to see so many pretty women and well- behaved men brought together i n this out- of- theworld place. The dances were the customary reels, and, of course, the Red River J i g . I was sorry, however, to notice a so- called improvement upon this historic dance; that is to say, they doubled the numbers engaged in it, and called it " The Wahpooskow J i g . " It seemed a dangerous innovation; and the introduction later on of a cotillon with the usual dreary and mechanical calls filled one with additional forebodings. We almost heard " the first low wash of waves where soon shall flow a human sea." But aside from such newfangled features, there was nothing to criticise. The fiddling was good, and the dancing was good, showing the usual expertness, in which performance the women stooped their shoulders gracefully, and bent their brows modestly upon the floor, whilst the men vied with each other i n the admirable and complicated variety of their steps. In fact, it was an evening very agreeably spent, and not the less so from its primitive envh- onnient. After joining i n a reel of eight, we left the scene with reluctance, the memorable J i g suddenly striking on our ears as we wended our way i n the darkness to our camp. As regards farming land in the region, for a long way inland Mr. Weaver and others described it as of the like good quality as at the Mission, but with much muskeg. It is difficult to estimate the extent of the latter, for, being |
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