Page 84 |
Previous | 84 of 520 | Next |
|
small (250x250 max)
medium (500x500 max)
Large
Extra Large
large ( > 500x500)
Full Resolution
|
This page
All
|
T H E H A L F - B R E E D S C R I P C O M M I S S I O N 73
the war of 1812. She was quite l i v e l y yet, so far as her wits
went, and seemed l i k e l y to go on l i v i n g .*
There were many good points i n the disposition of the
" Lakers " generally, both young and old. Their kindness
and courtesy to strangers and to each other was marked, and
profanity was unknown. Indeed, i f one heard bad language
at all it was from the lips of some Yankee or Canadian
teamster, a i r i n g his superior knowledge of the world amongst
the natives.
The place, i n fact, surprised one— no end of buggies, buck-boards
and saddles, and brightly dressed women, after a not
altogether antique fashion; the men, too, orderly, c i v i l , and
obliging. Infants were generally tucked into the comfortable
moss- bag, but boys three or four years old were seen
tugging at their mothers' breasts, and all fat and generally
good- looking. The whole community seemed well fed, and
were certainly well clad— some girls extravagantly so, the
love of finery being the ruling trait here as elsewhere.
One lost, indeed, all sense of remoteness, there was such a
well- to- do, familiar air about the scene, and such a bustle of
clean- looking people. How all this could be supported by
fur i t was difficult to see, but it must have been so, for there
was, as yet, l i t t l e or no farming amongst the old " Lakers."
I t was, of course, a great fur country, and though the fur-bearing
animals were sensibly diminishing, yet the prices
of peltries had risen by competition, whilst supplies had been
correspondingly cheapened. It was a good marten country,
and, as this fur was the fad of fashion, and brought an
extravagant price, the animal, like the beaver, was threatened
with extinction, the more so as the rabbits were then in
their period of scarcity.
There were other aspects of Lake life which there is
neither space nor inclination to describe. If some features
• This very old woman died, I believe, at Lesser Slave Lake only
last spring ( 1908). It the date of her birth was correct, and we had
good reason to believe it, she must have been far over 100 years old
when she died.
Object Description
Description
| Title | Page 84 |
| OCR | T H E H A L F - B R E E D S C R I P C O M M I S S I O N 73 the war of 1812. She was quite l i v e l y yet, so far as her wits went, and seemed l i k e l y to go on l i v i n g .* There were many good points i n the disposition of the " Lakers " generally, both young and old. Their kindness and courtesy to strangers and to each other was marked, and profanity was unknown. Indeed, i f one heard bad language at all it was from the lips of some Yankee or Canadian teamster, a i r i n g his superior knowledge of the world amongst the natives. The place, i n fact, surprised one— no end of buggies, buck-boards and saddles, and brightly dressed women, after a not altogether antique fashion; the men, too, orderly, c i v i l , and obliging. Infants were generally tucked into the comfortable moss- bag, but boys three or four years old were seen tugging at their mothers' breasts, and all fat and generally good- looking. The whole community seemed well fed, and were certainly well clad— some girls extravagantly so, the love of finery being the ruling trait here as elsewhere. One lost, indeed, all sense of remoteness, there was such a well- to- do, familiar air about the scene, and such a bustle of clean- looking people. How all this could be supported by fur i t was difficult to see, but it must have been so, for there was, as yet, l i t t l e or no farming amongst the old " Lakers." I t was, of course, a great fur country, and though the fur-bearing animals were sensibly diminishing, yet the prices of peltries had risen by competition, whilst supplies had been correspondingly cheapened. It was a good marten country, and, as this fur was the fad of fashion, and brought an extravagant price, the animal, like the beaver, was threatened with extinction, the more so as the rabbits were then in their period of scarcity. There were other aspects of Lake life which there is neither space nor inclination to describe. If some features • This very old woman died, I believe, at Lesser Slave Lake only last spring ( 1908). It the date of her birth was correct, and we had good reason to believe it, she must have been far over 100 years old when she died. |
Tags
Comments
Post a Comment for Page 84
