HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1933-11-23, Page 71
rr
Vl6Ml'tl!iR 23, 1933
THE SEAFORTH NEWS.
PAGE SEVEN
It IIease ee ata--'allte-+t-el n-
1711 >• .nitw.....1113.e nn.enneaoo.nl1
a ,
Monthl
tateinentS
We can save you money on Bill and
Charge Forms, standard sizes to fit
ledgers, white or colors.
It will pay you• to see our samples.
Also best quality Metal Hinged Sec-
tional Post Binders and Index.
The Seaforth News
Phone 84
I
1
1 9
�u�ttn�ar�an�uu�lln��o�au�nn�Yn�un ��up
A DOLLAR'S WORTH
Clip this coupon and mail it with $1 for a six weeks' trial subscription to
THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
Published by Tae Caniaa& Cant= PO3LrSoM10 BOCTETT
Boston, Massachusetts, II. B. A.
In it 3015 will end the daily' goad news of the world Iran Its sag speolol writers,
as finance, seducatioon0eradio, devoted
to a mill he glaand d children's
owelcome into sour home so
fearless an advocate of peace and prohibition. And don't miss Snubs. Our Dos.
and the Sundialandthe other features.
Tseo CHRISTIAN Sc rerca.Mexrroa, Back Bay Station, Mass.
- - Please send me a six weeks' tris' subscription.. I enclose one dollar ($1).
+ted P
�P9 3..D (Town),
1
(Name. please Print)
(Address):
(State),
-HISTORY OF THE FRENCH
SETTLEMENT` IN HURON
"By \'V. !Sherwood (Fox, :President.
'University of Western ',Ontario,
(Hidden mostly in a corner of the
'county df Huron and extending into
the adjoining corner of ILambton are
two smell French-Canadian commun-
ities that are almost unknown to the
Canadian' people in general. Even sev-
enty years ago when the contrast be-
nween the French-speaking elements`
of the 'population off Western Ontario
teas more marked than it is today
these co0tinunities received scant at-
tention..'A'pp'arently:the author of the'.
official handbook of Huron county
pol1ished in 1363 was under the im-
pression that there was only one
French-speaking settlement rather
than two, for in his reference to the
population of the entire 'county he.
makes only this simple and terse com-
ment: "Thcpopulation is principally'.
composed 'of 'Scottish and Irish, with
small settlement of French on the lake
shore." He reports that in IP8611 out of
332,000 people in the county only 576
e -ore ofIFrench speech; of these 479
were natives of Canada and 97 natives
of France. Today the total is ,n=ot far
from the same figure. In 1929 in:
French settlement alone there were!
546 persons' distributed among 967,
:families.' Why there should be so little;
change in ninety- years we shall ex-
The two communities lieonly a
:short distance apart and yet are sep-
taeate foundations. They 'arca Greed'.
iBend, formerly known as Aux
Creches, i.e. The Tongs, and tett miles I
to the northward, on the present Blue
.eV<tter TEighw-ay, French Settlement',
dr Estaliiissemeirt'Francais..
lGraiid'Bend retains but few marks
of its French origin, having 'been ov-
erwhelmed for many years,'by an 'an-
natal flood l of English=speaking tour
fats and ca'--eers. It is situate(! in Ste-
phen .township of IPlut+on anal Bosun
aloof 'tovrn'ship of Teambton at the
northern tip of the egea't loop of the.
Alex Sauble river where the stream.
rornerly came within a few bode of the
false anti then doubled aback Upon it-
self to flow southward ten miles to
Port Pranks to its normal ohiklct. At
present a short .artificial sub :conducts.
e water straight to the lake and
reaves the end of the old chatuniel plat -
tically dry. The picturesique"'approp-
riateness of the two navies given to
the striking loin ci'f the river and
.nence to the village; is most obvious—
Grand Bend, Aux :Cradles. •
i0n e ',glance at the lace 'reveals its
,g e N e p
nattira'l suitability for settlement. In
deed, the bndiamis had occupied it for
nag'ttelties before the coming of
a hires.
11 -se
The district offers an unusual •com-
bination of 'advantages -a mild cli,
state, an area of fertile sandy soil for
fruit trees and early crops, another
area of rich clay loam for the later
staple produce, lake na=vigation, an
easy:portage from the river to the
lake, an abundance of fish and game,
and an .amazing variety of species of
forest 'trees. Actually a few English
people settled' here beforethe coming
of the 'French, That Champlain passed.
that way in 11616 is only a local "myth
based upon a loyal but romantic
wish, nor so far a I know is there
any evidence that the missionaries or
IHuronia ever visited the spot, for in
their time there was no .settlement on
the Detroit to attract them sauth-
ward. The region was part of ,the
great tract of over a million acres
purchased 'from the Government in.
11S26 by the Canada Company, a tract
extending front Guelph on the east to
Goderich on the west and comprising
parts of the preeent counties of Well-
ington, N\ atei+too, 'Perth, Middlesex,
Lanhbton and all of Huron. Even in
our` day the Canada Company eti;'.
Owns and administers a 'large parcel
of laird near Grand Bend.
'A'fter the most, diligent search I'can-
not find the exact date of the first
:French settler's 'arrival. In 1832 a
IScotchman of the name of ,Brewster
built a sawmill on the river in Bosaii-
quet township, nut apparently the
:French did not come until' about 11845,
The first group came from near Mon-
treal, driven from their 'larvas by a
succession of crop failures and a drop
in prices and attracted to 'this land Of
promise by the rosy talcs •told 'by;re-
turned, coureua's cle hots, These pion-
eers were very. poor, Those who had
any means at all bought laird at $3 an
acre, bot in lots no larger 'than twenty-
live acres, She fact that the settlers
calve chiefly to fish rattier , than to
farm vpae- also a fact nr favoring the
purchase, of entall parcels of, land. Oth-
ers eihnply "squatted" on the Canada
Company's property and stayed there
so long that later they could not leg-
•ally be dispossessed, 'From time to
time new bands Game mostly from
Western Quebec, but someeven from
'Prance and Switzerland by Sway 'of
New York, Buffalo and Lake •Erie and
thence northward overland. About half
of these pioneers 'were Catholics, •the
remainder Protestants. Religiously the
community remains m'ixed'to-dap.
The most striking evidence of the
early .Fre,och ,character of the settle -
=let is seen in the names of the e v
sting families, for example, Desjar=
dins, Masson, Rave'ile •(originally
Rainvilte), and Sharrorw; (originally
Charreau), Here emerges„ the French'
Canadian; tendency to change sur -
navies. But the nanfee of the, families
of ti1l3 neighborhood are an unreliable
'awl inadequate index of origin, for a•
member of families bearing names that
seein'ta be Irish or. Scotch or Engram
are actually French-speaking, or at
15031 bilingual. I suspect that in many
cases these named are really French
wits a corrupt spelling, The :casual
v inter to'Grand Bend today will pro-
bably not hear a syllable of 'French,
Met one who really desires to hear
will mat have to knock' at many doors,
The older people delight to -;peak the
Language of their'own youth andtheir
fathers, but to the younger generat=es
it is purely an academic study. Before
many years almost the only stark of
'French colonization at Aux Creches
will be the ;French names on the ;hop
signs and mailboxes.
S have said these will be almost the
only marks, for there is yet another
nark, the most enduring of all. A.vsit
to the village cemetery w'ill'make my
reference clear. This picturesque little
iGod's-Acre lies along the summit of
the first long sand -dune west of the
l3lue Water Highway and there one
may read writ in imperishable marble
and granite anew- brief but authentic
records of the early- settlement,; They
supply:' at least a fair list of names of
the original settlers. '-Unfortunately,
but as .one would expect, the date of
'migration is not mentioned in any
single instance. However, the record
of several birth dates -allows one to
draw certain inferences' as to the time
of settlement,: For example, one -Tele-
sphore Parent was born in Quebec in
'151111 'according to the inscription on
his tombstone. If he, migrated' in 1$43
he would be thirty-=four years old,.
just at fhe prune of life for making a
home in a new land. Other inscrip-
tions reveal birth dates of 1802, 11806,
1835 and the Province of Quebec as
the place of origin. 'Startling and even
amusing are the differences in the
spellings of the same family names.
One no longer wonders' that 'very of-
ten relatives who limed even a short
distance apart lost track of relation-
ships, I have been told of a family of
eight brothers no two of wham spell-
ed their names alike.
The second of the two French set -
elements has been continuously loyal
to the traditions, language and church.
of the Province of Quebec. Strange to
say, it ha no official secular name,
though the English-speaking. people
of the region ocmrnonly refer to it as
St, Joseph's. !However, it has an offi-
cial ecclesiastical name, for in the Ca-
tholic_Diocese of London it is desig-
nated Etabliesement Francais, or
French .Settlement: From almost the.
beginning of the colony its real centre
has been the .parish church of St. Pe-
ter's and the priests residence, but for
a number of years the apparent centre
was the now ruined village of St. Jos-
eph, •which was built on or near the
site of Johnson's kill and adorned
with a neve name at once less prosaic
and more suited to a.French-Canadian
population. This village was the scene
of "a romantic and unsuccessful ad-
venture in a scheme •that included a
vast project of harbor, canal and real
estate promotion. Of that we may
not. for many ren osis, speak now, 'nit
sooner or later some historian will
have to record ,its long and,fascinating
story. Suffice it to ea), that one of
the greatest events of recent politica:
concern in the +Donhinion has its roots
in plans and personages associated
with the proposed development of
St. 'Joseph.
The first settlers arrived in 1646,
attracted by the glowing description
of the region given thein by three
coureurs de bois, Claude Gentles, Ab-
raham'Bedard and Baptiste Durand.
who, as if to testify to the sincerity
of their words, became rnenfbers of
the colony and committed themselves
to sharing the hardships of pioneer
life. But it was not only the attrac-
tion of the new that moved these first'
confers; they were also driven from
their farrnta,nds in Quebec by the
same, unfortunate conditions that di-
rected their compatriots to Grand
Bend: Most of them 'came froin. Jbli-
ette, iBerthier, L'Assonnotion, St.
Thomas, Ste Elizabeth and Levis.
Since the easy fishing offered by
Lake T'Iuron was the chief factor in-
fluencing the choice of a site for a
home, < each family purchased only a
small plot of land. The price they
paid .fhe Canada Company was only.
$3 per: acre. At first the colony was
a sacro v line of settlements stretch-
ing for ,three miles along the lake
front. Nlow the sante total population
occupies an area nearly ten miles long
and six miles deep, each family own-
ing
wn-ung, a farm of considerable size. For
seventy years, however; the popula-
tion has remained stationary owing to
the steady Withdrawal'' of most of tile
young people' to the Canadian Border
Cities and Detroit,
IA route followed by the settlers in
making their way to their new "home,
was alone one and 'the '•joerney involv-
ed was arduous. The first stage tvas,
the trip by water from: 1'cosehreal' to'.
IHantieton, Einem Hamilton the road
little better ithasa rough path, led
'them over the escarpnfen't 10 the selt-
ietnents of he Pennsylvania Dutch and
Germans in South '\Vateeloo near' the
modern IQetdhener, and thence` to
lSteatford; from 'Stratford to Seaforth,
and thence to tie left through„Truce-
field on the London-Goderieit:'sad':
Bayfield on Lake Huron, A Zen miles
south of Bayfield Lay the lands that
were to become their home. Their ex-
periences here were practically the
same as these of all t.h. ,,ver settlers
gr \t e tarn Ontario; to know the
chronicles of any 0115 settlement h t'
laiow itne chronicles cles o. this. After al,,
the advance from frontier hardship to
modern .con-Ifort vas everyivnere pret-
ty rapid, thanks to fertile soil, to rich
waters and to the intelligence and in-
dustry of the pioneers,
Apart from the relatively recent
3031s tructioi, and demolition of St. Jo-
seph the history' of the colony has not
been eventful. Nevertheless; two or.
three occurrences of importance in re-
lation to local development must be
noted The lands first occupied by
the _etrlers were strung out along the
Curti overhanging thelake and com-
munication amongst then was diffi-
cult
iff:cult because they were bound together
only by a winding footpath. -Along
this men had to carry wheat on their
backs for ten miles, to the mill at Bay-
field or even' to the shill at Goderich
twice the distance sw1ay. The absence
of -a real road retarded the expansion
and prosperity of the settlement.About
1$50, however, a road ,known as the
Sables Lisle was made from Aux Sab-
les River at Grand Bend to GOderich.
This road was far enough back from
the lake to -permit the extension of
farm properties into the interior. Its
width made .vehicular traffic possible;
while its straightness shortened the
distance between places north and
south along the take. Another event
wsn the erection of the parish church.
In '111535 for the sum of five shillings
in lawful stoney of the Province 'of
Quebec the Canada Company gave to
the Episcopal Corporation of the Dio-
cese of Toronto ten acres of land as
the site of a church. 'Shortly after-
wards the first St, Peter's Church
ryas built here. This supplied a much
needed centre for the life of the com-
munity.
‘It is said that the population of the
settlement is staunchly Liberal in its
politics. 'It seems that the cause of
this partisan attitude is due to as ac-
cidenta9 circumstance. In the ; early
days the settlers, having cleared their
own tots of trees, illegally secured
their firewood from the adjoining
lauds of the Canada 'Company. 'In time
the total destruction of timber on
these !,ands became no small item, in
consequence of which the company
reported the loss to the Crown. which
prosecuted the parishioners for theft.
The latter were defended by ,Malcolm
Cameron, a 'Protestant Liberal of God-
erich, who succeeded in convincing
the court that his clients had been dri-
ven by the direst necessity- to the ac
of which they were charged. Their ac
quittat gave i'Ir. Cameron the solid
French vote each time he ran for Par
!lament and thus made his calling and
election sure. With 'apparently' inten
tional. humor Father -Marchand in his
11103013' of the parish adds: Had he,
that ie. lar. Cameron, been a Tory, the
parish would be so by tradition."'
A recital of the names of some of
C e boil?nh t- :11:. 1m3 51 to 0 n
^ansa _ bi:lrel .,.t at 1.-.-''1.1111
11:01,.1 any -w , '.:1. QOs.'lel,
first comers, 1.: 7,1 tit I)ihc'n,uri.l,
riyeau. Lau `r:1.. De , and aC
Bri,son ni' Cantia. I u
mere recital of the. names is 11 511-
!1.1;2:11.3 :.te 111.1,, 31,33 take int:” e alsic
eration' the time th
nail -17 these names have ::1351 assoc-
iated with Canada. 1 pc it to tle'1.'-
t >ry of six families ,nily as se"forth
briefly amen.: ,nail- cite 1 155 Father
11archand.
"The Brisson:, descend from Rene
Brisson, born in France .n 1,535 and
married in Quebec ;o Anne \ es nut in
1665,
"The Du charms descend iron"
Fiacre Ducharms, a carpenter, born in
Paris in 1628 and married Marie Pa-
craw in Qnebec in 16 39. They had nine
children. The oldest, Louis,' was killed'
by the English with Cabassier, and
Claude was killed by the Iroquois In-
dians with Lemoyne de tBienville.
"The Gelinas descend from Etienne'
Gehnas, born in ,France and married
in Quebec in 1672, Francoise de Char
meuit of the Diocese of Mans,'Fraece.
"The Corriveaus descend from Et-
ienne Corriveau, born in 1643 at Fon-
tereau, in the Diocese of Angouienie,'
France, and was married at Quebec to
Marie Renouard in 1663.
The Cantina deseeud from Nicholas
Cantin, born in France in .11633, and
who married Madeleine Pou.Oie at
Quebec in 1660."
The meaning of these dry biagraph-
teal details is anything but dry and
lifeless to one who is sensitive to the
importance of the continuity of a cul-
tural tradition. They mean that this
seemingly recent settlemen=t in the
Young Province of Ontario is really
by direct descent the continuation of
a cultivation that has existed in Cana-
da for nearly three centuries. It is a
fact that French Settlement has been
loyal to its French-Canadian traditions
and yet it has never lived an exclusive
life apart from its neighbors di differ-
ent descent and speech. To its langu-
age also it has been loyal, but truth
compels one to state that in this case
intention has been leas successful
than in other matters, for the French
of its people white fluent is corrupt.
If given a choice of language even in
talking to a Frenchman most of these
parishioners prefer to transact business
in English, because,as they them-
selves say. they are unfamiliar with
'French business terminology.
'Persian Balm—Invaluable to the
whole family-. To the mother, a flaw-
less aid to loveliness. To the child a
soothing. healing balm. And to the
father, a splendid 'hair fixative and
cooling shaving lotion. Persian Balm
tones and refreshes the skin. Makes
hands delightfully soft and white. In-
dispensable to dainty women. A little
gentle rtsbhing and it is absorbed by
the tissue;, making: the skin truly
rose -leaf in texture.
Want and For Sale Ads, 1 week, 2:5c
NJchills or Skull"s", whichever way they are spelt suits Georg Von
Opel, who captured the. Diamond Sculls at Henley, England,
and who was a winner at Toronto, Canada, for he has just returned
from a month of hunting south of Banff, world famous Canadian Paci-
fic Rocky Mountatn Resort, and has brought back with him' some spen-
did specimens of ,big game skulls. After booking for a two weeks'
trip he found the sport so good that he increased it to six weeks.
Elk, moose, mule -deer, Rocky Mountain Goats, and Bighorn Sheep,
he added to his collection while hunting south, but failed to get a
grizzly. For two days he, trailed one big fellow but the inclement
and changeable weather met with,; made success impossible. The
grizzly, however, annoyed' by the 'trailing, turned the tables on
'Georg' by trailing the hunter to camp and stealing Georg's most
prized goat head. Von Opel made the trip with Frank Phillips.
fainous;'Rocky"Mountain guide. 'Picture shows Von. Opel on the
Services We Gan Render
In the time of. need PROTECTION
is your best friend.
Life Insurance
—To our. rotect
p y LOVED ONES.
Auto Insurance—
To protect you against LIABILITY
to PUBLIC and their PROPERTY.
Fire Insurance—
To
nsu ance-Tr p t„ect your HO1IE and its
COX "1' LINTS,
is ne
S k ss and Accident
Insurance—
To protect your INCOME
Any of the above lines we can give
you in strong and reliable companies..
t£ interested, call or write,
E, Q. CHAMBERLAIN
INSURANCE AGENCY
Phone 334 Seaforth, Oat
D. H. McInnes
ehiropractor
Electro Therapist - Massage
Office - Cornntercial. Hotel
Hours—Mon, and Thur;, after-
noons and by appointment
FOOT CORRECTION
by manipulation—Sun-ray treat-
ment
Phone 227.
INere and A here
One of the largest cargoes of
lunti'er shipped from Saint John
on the Canadian Atlantic sea coast
was forwarded to Great Britain
recently. It consisted of 3,043,-
556 feet, mostly of deals.
Output of nickel in Canada in
1932 totalled 30,327,968 pounds
valued at $7,179,862 Production
during the first six months of 1933
amounted to 22,802,434 pounds 'is
compared with 21,162,786 pounds
for the corresponding period of
1932.
Every home at some future date
will have 'fair conditioning' and
the word "heating' will pass out
of use among home owners, 3. J.
Donovan. General Electric Com-
pany expert, told a largely at-
tended .meeting of the Electrical,
Club at the Royal York hotel, To-
ronto, recently.
Steep grades of the Rocky
Mountain areas presented nu dif-
ficulty to the Royal Scot, crack
British flyer, en route to Winni-
peg and the east from Vancouver
recently. The all -British train is
attracting great popular enthu-
siasm throughout Canada on its
return journey to Montreal.
Montreal's "million dollar hole”
on Dorchester street, where a rail-
way terminal was to have been
built, will become the world's
most costly sunken garden, if
Canada sees eye to eye with a
couple of Montreal aldermen who
advocate beautifying the gash
with flowers and shrubs.
Canadian Pacific employees tin-
der 21 and minor sons of em-
ployees are again offered the op-
portunity of two University of
Montreal scholarships by compe-
titive examination, according to
an announcement by Grant Hall,
senior rice -president of the com-
pany. Applicants have until May 1,
199•', to make application.
Twenty-one months of training
in a recognized shop, junior ma-
triculation or its equivalent and a
course n an academy to be estab-
lished in Toronto Is the ordeal for
novices for Ontario registration as
barbers and hairdressers, it was
stated at a meeting of tonsorial
arbiters at the Royal 'fork hotel,
Toronto, recently.
Five ports hitherto not on the
schedule of world cruise liners
have been added to the 1934
itinerary of the Canadian Pa-
cific liner Empress of Britain
when she leaves New York,
January 4 next. They are Sema-
rang, Java; Boeleleng and Padang
Bay, Island of Bali; Penang,
Straits Settlements; and Zambo-
anga, in the Sulu Archipelago.
In malting a choice between
transportation by rail and byroad,
shippers should consider what the
railroads are doing and havedone
for their advantage, G. G. Om-
manney, development commis-
sioner, Canadian Pacific Railway,
told the Rotary Club of Lyndon-
ville, Vt., recently. He cited many
cases where the railways had first
inventoried, then developed the
natural resources of the coneln-
snt.
Turkeys in Winter
Breeding turkeys s11 010 not 1*e con-
fined to houses during minter inuths
0111 allowed to roam at will daring the
day. The only .shelter thjt is requir-
ed for 111101 at eight is a straw barn
es- closed -in shed. They should not he
kept in a draughty place. but any
building that will provide ,:ilelter from
wind, rain and show i3 quite 'suitable.
Never mouse turkeys with hens or in
heated houses because calds which
later develop into roup are almost
sure to follow. During the winter
months 8110 breeding turkeys should
receive only limited rations, as they
have a tendency to become over fat
if rbeli fed. Hard grain should be
given in preference to mash or ground
grains. 'Equal parts of oats, wheat,
and buclewheat are quite suitable dur-
ing the cold months, but when the
weather moderates itt 'spring, the
•buckwheat should be discontinued:
:Once daily during winter is often
enough to feed, and fresh water
should be provided at least once e
clay,