indian - Algoma University Archives

INDIAN
A
RE~
National Publi c a t ion lor the Indians
L.J.C. et M.l.
VOL. XX, No. 10
RD
:opies 10 cents
WINNIPEG, CANADA
CEM BER 1957
2
INDIAN RECORD
Oblate Indian Welfare
Commission Meets In Ottawa
INDIAN RECORD
A National Publication for the
Indians of
Founded
P u blished 10 times
Oblates of Mary
Canada
1938
a year by t h e
Immaculate
OTTA W A-At the annual meeting of the I n d ian and E sk imo
Welfare Commission of the Missionary O b l ates, Novemb er 9-12,
the recommendations made by the I nstitute of the I n d ian Schoo l
Principals, who met last August in O ttawa , were approved .
The devel opment of the C athoP resent b y sp ecia l inv itation
lic Indian League of C anada, the were: Fathers E. Ringu et, O .
promotion of vocations among R ob id oux, H. Mascar,et a nd C .
the Indians , the organization of D eHarveng; and the Commisa summer schoo l for princip als sion's staff, F athers P . P ich e and
and teachers, the Governmen t's A. Renaud, O .'M .I.
plans for the rehabilitation of
the Indian, were among the
topics -s tudied at the Commis- Fr. Laviolette Speaks
3ion's meeting.
On Indian Missions
Recommended b y the S u mmer
W I N NIPEG - F r. G. Laviolette,
Insti,tute on Indian education
are: Language developm,e nt, vo - O.M.I., editor of the Western Suncational training, high school day Visitor, addressed the A mic u s
facilities, guidance and p l ace- Club at the St. R egis Hotel, D ec. 1.
ment services. One of the major His topic was "Indian M issionary
conclusions of the I nstitute wer e Work In T he P rovince of Manithat the non-Indian provinci,a l toba " , with special reference to
3chools a r e not yet abl e to pro - the Sioux Indian Missions of the
vide for the education of I n d ian Archdiocese of W innipeg.
Ind ian 6- Es ki mo W elfa re
Comm ission
REV. G. LAVIOLETTE, O.M.I.
Edito r and Manager
A ll co r r espon d ence is to be sent to:
INDIAN RECORD
619 McDermot Ave.,
Winnipeg 2, Man.
Phone: SPruce 2- 3469
Subscription Rate: $1.00 a Year
Printed by Canadian Publishers Ltd .
Winnipeg, Man .
Authorized as Second Class Matter
Post Office Dept., O ttawa, Canada
E DJTOHIA L
A Slow Process
N otwi thstanding the seeming
u rgency with which the Canadian
G overnment wishes to implement
an integration program for the
Indian, we have evidence that
this is a slow process. Not only the
G overnment machinery is very
ponderous, b u t the Indians themsel ves are not overly anxious to
punch time clocks.
In the recent months, Robert L.
Gowe, of the Toronto Globe &
Mail, commented that the Hon.
F u I to n, acting Superintendent
General of Indian Affairs, had
made it clear that any integration
would be strictly on a voluntary
basis, and that complete integra tion would take a long time to
become a fact.
T he Winnipeg Free Press, in an
editorial, affirmed that: The prob lems of the Canadian Indian cannot be solved overnight; Mr .
Fraser Earle, a Winnipeg executive, declared that a long-range
program to orientate the Indian
and to enable his white neighbor
to understand him better is needed.
The Regina Leader Post, reporting on a Citizenship Council meeting, said : "The best adjustment
is found among Indians whose
lives on the reservations most
closely resembl e the way of life
off the reservations."
"It is a slow moving process.
The non-Indian public has a .deep
resp onsibility but it is something . .. " which is to be worked
out together.
In M ontr,eal , D r . G. C. Montur,e, -o f Ind ian descent, said that,
given the opportunity, the Indian
is capable 'of a much great contribution to C anada. He la dded:
"the I ndian has contributed doct ors, l a,w yers, engineers, clergymen and priests. His misdemeanors caught the public eye
while his peaceful, honest pursu its, far more in abundanc-e ,
tend ed to be ignored.
" H e was a ward of the
gov'e rnment, subject to the expend iencies -a nd realism of that
government.
December 1957
In September, Fr. E. Bernet- Rollande, O.M.I., principal of the
Blue Quills' I.R.S., in St. Paul,
Alta., has been appointed principal at St. Michael's I.R.S., at
Duck Lake, Sask. Fr. Louis Cle ment Latour, O.M.I., principal at
Duck Lake, took over the ad:TIinistration of the Blue Quills'
I.R.S ., w h ere h e had been principal from 1942-1947.
In Ontario
Fr. E. Benoit, O.M .I., will now
reside at Red Lake, Ont., where
he has a chapel and residence
under construction. Fr. Benoit is
in charge of the foll owing Indian
Missions and lumber camps: Lac
Seul, Red Lake, Grassy Narrows,
Frenchman's H ead, Hudson, Sioux
Lookout, Flat Lake, Pekangicum,
Poplar Hills, Gold Pines, Quibell
3.nd Camp Robinson.
THERESIMIK
children and that, with better
facilities and techniques completed with a thorough fo llow-up
of pupils after graduation, R,esi dential Schools can contrib ute
the mo-st ,t o the ,s o cial re-a djustment of the Indians.
A fu ller report of the C ommission's meeting will be published in the Indian Record when
availabl e.
Twenty-four Oblate missionades took part in the annual
meeting of the Oblate I n d ian and
Eskimo W eHare Commission.
They are: The V. Rev. Fr. S .
Larochelle, representing the
Superior General- of ,t he Oblates,
Their Excellencies the Most
Reverend Bishops Henri Routhier (president) , J . L. Coud ert
(vice-pr,e,s ident) , J . M. Trocellier ,
Henri BeHeau, M. Lacroix, L.
Scheffer, Paul D umouchel , F.
O'Grady and A . Sanschagrin
(councillor) .
The V. Rev. Fathers P rovincial
Sylvio D ucharme, J. C. L aframboise, I. Tourigny, G. Michaud
(councillor) , Jul es L eguerrier,
R. Haramburu, E. F illion (representing Fr. M. L'a vigne), and A .
Desnoyers (councillor) , all O .M.I.
High Eagle Family,
Pipestone, Man .
Fr. Laviolette has been in
charge of these Sioux missions
since 1935. He first undertook to
build chapels on each Reserve.
Since then, the Catholic popula tion has increased, and Federal
Indian schools with Catholic
teachers on each Reserve, have
been established . He reported
that over a period of 2-0 years
there has been a vast improvement as to the way of life of the
Indians.
This is as near a translation as
possible, in Esquimo, of the Little
Flower's autobiography. Written
by Fr. A . Thibert, O.M.I., the book
is published by His Exc. Most Rev.
Marc Lacroix, O.M.I., Vicar Apostolic of Hudson's Bay.
Georges Poitras
A limited number of copies is
Wins Trophy
available at the Institute of Mis siology of the Ottawa University,
LEBRET, Sask. - Georges Poi Oblates' Avenue. Price per copy tras, who graduated last June at
is 50c.
St. Paul's Indian High School and
who is now studying at the Moose
NEXT MONTH
Jaw Normal School, has been
awarded the "Tom Longboat Tro Published for the first time:
phy" for the most outstanding
Catholic Day Schoo-I,
Sister St. Therese, S.G.M.,
Indian athlete of the year in
Griswold Reserve, Man .
by .Margaret Arnett MacLeod,
Canada. The trophy was presented
hoted Winnipeg writer and hisFr. Laviolette stated that it will
on Nov. 22, in the Gym, after a
torian .
be quite some time yet before the
basket
ball
game
between
Moose
Do not miss this moving
Indian and Metis are fully inteJaw Normal and St. Paul Indian
story.
High. (More on this next month) grated in the Canadian way of
life and that the only solution to
- the problem is better e ducation
facilities and improving the econSEND A GIFT SUBSCRIPTION TO THE INDIAN RECORD AS A
omic situation of the Indians who
CHRISTMAS GIFT W HICH WI'LL LAST THRU THE YEAR
live on the Reserves .
December 1957
INDIAN RECORD
3
Eileen Lackett-Joe
Buried in N. Van.
Will Join Sisters
Of Charity
NORTH VANCOUVER - ReMiss Eva Joseph , daughter of
quiem Mass was celebrated SatMr. and Mrs. Camille Joseph, of
urday for Eileen H a rriett LacFairmont, B.C., left October 2
kett-Joe, 25 , the first member
for Halifax, Nova Scotia, where
of the Squamish Indian Tribe to
she will enter as a Postulant, the
graduate as a practical nurse .
Sisters of Charity.
She died Oct. 30, in St. Paul's
Eva has been a student at the
Hospital, where she was formKootenay Residential School, St.
erly on the nursing staff. Her
Eugene's Mission, Cranbrook,
practical nurses training , was
B.C ., for the past ten years. She
taken at the vocational school
attended the Mount Baker High
in Vancouver after graduating
School for two years.
from North Vancouver High
It is an outstanding "first" in
School where she was active in
history for Eva, since she is the
sports and other school activities.
"first" native born Indian girl
Last year, she was chosen Miss
to
take the heroic step-the step
Squamish for the Buckskin
that leads a long way off to
Gloves competition. Last JanuHalifax where she will devote
ary, she headed her class at the
her life to God . "I would like to
Youth Training School, UBC.
work among and help my own
She also trained at North Vanpeople to save their souls," said
couver General Hospital and
Two teachers o·f the Erm ineskin Residential School, Miss Lucie' Gallant this plucky little Kootenay maid
Coqualeetza Indian Hospital ,
and Miss EIi%abeth Burchell, are shown here with Mungo Martin, who, has when asked her reasons for the
Sardis.
Prior to taking ill about a carved the totem pole which is to be presented to the Quaen on the occas,ion step she is taking.
of the B.C. cen,t ennial, next year.
month ago, she worked with the
Indian Health Service amongst
her people on the reserve.
Firemen "Spruce Up"
Surviving are her parents, Mr.
and Mrs. Dennis Lackett-J oe;
Ch ristmas Toys for
three brothers, Roland, an xray technician in Edmonton;
OTTAWA-The Native Brotherhood of British Colum- Indian Children
Phillip and Ronald; four sisters, bia has ,c alled on the federal government to take steps which
CRANBERRY PORTAGE,
Joyce, Linda , Marilyn and Rhon- will improve the 10t of Indians both on a nd off the reserves. Man.-Bell Telephone fire deda; and her grandmother, Mrs.
Quo tin g
liberally from
t th I d '
. t f '
partment members here - like
Lackett-Joe.
speeches by Prime Minister Die- Pt restehn " Ce nd~an pom 10 VIew other regular full-time fire deeop e hastha partments in Manitoba Rev. F. Price was the cele- fenbaker before he took office °h I e thana tlhan Pth
like
brant at the 10 a .m . service in .
woe ra er
an
roug
e t hI
'
.
St. Paul's Church and burial m June, the ~rotherho~d asked narrow conduit pipe of the ad- 0 e.p needy chI~dren at Chr.~st.
. .
that B .C. IndIans be gIVen the
. . t t· v ~
.
"
I mas tIme. In partIcular, they lIke
was m No. 2 MIssIOn Reserve , federal vote and that an Indian mIllIS ra I e servIces.
to see that these children get
Cemetery.
be appointed to the Senate.
the toys.
So , when not answering the
View Supported
Wanted: Markets
fire whistle , they spend their
Fr. G. Dun I op I 0 • M •I•
The brief was presented in
time repairing broken and disPrincipa'i at Kuper Is. Ottawa in October by president For Indian Goods
carded. toys - and make them
Robert P. Clifton, of the native
just like new.
Last month , the Oblates of brotherhood, and Rev. Peter R .
PRINCE ALBERT - Wanted :
The firemen here are in
Mary Immaculate replaced the Kelly, chairman of the organi- A market for Saskatchewan' s search of such toys for the InMontfort Fathers as directors of "': ation' s legislative committee. It colorful Indian crafts!
dian children of the area and,
. t'
.
the Indian Residential School at was received on behalf of the
India n crafts, anCIen m OrI- if there is enough of them , toys
Kuper Island. Rev. G. Dunlop, Progressive Conservative gov- gin, and unique to this part of will go also to the children at
O .M.I., is the new principal.
=rnment by Justice Minister Ful- North America , are in danger of Clearwater Sanatorium.
The vice-principal and director ton, Defence Minister Pearkes becoming a lost art , due to lack
The local firefighters are getof the missions of the district is 'lnd Agriculture Minister Hark- of markets, G. McCaw, regional ting ready co-operation from The
Rev. J. MacKay, O .M .I. The ness.
administrator for the D epart- Pas police and volunteer fireschool was built in 1890 and was
" Since many of the m embers ment of Social Welfare and Re- men who are collecting toys for
directed by the diocesan priests of the government now in power habilitation , said here recently . ' the boys here _ to " make like
until the Montfort Fathers be- supported this position of grantHe said the craft was still new."
gan their work there in Decem- ing the federal vote to the Cana- known to older Indian and Metis
dian Indians, we are glad to 'r esidents in nearly all northern
ber 1906.
bring this matter up and press settlements . Beautiful mocca- GRID R'OA:DrS T'HRO'U,GH
for its fulfilment at this time ," sins, parkas, jackets and gloves ,
Paull backs
'S aid the brief.
richly trimmed with intricate I NrDIAN 'RE;S:E'RV AT'IOiN'S
Others Have It
beadwork ; baskets made of b a rk
I'ndian probe
REGINA (TO Fifty-eight
At the present time , Indians and dyed roots ; Siwash knitted
NORTH VANCOUVER - An- in British Columbia , Manitoba , garments and gay knick-knacks miles of grid roads will be built
drew Paull, president of the Ontario, Nova Scotia and New- are turned out b y t hese skilled through Indian reservations in
North American Indian Brother- foundland have the franchise in craftsmen.
Saskatchewan in the near future.
hood , said recently he agreed provincia l elections.
Mr. McCaw felt that a con- The announcement came after
with Frank Calder, former Atlin
The B.C . brotherhood recalled sistent market for these products finalizing of negotiations beMLA, that there should be an Prime Minister Diefenbaker's of the far north would encourage tween the federal Department
investigation into the operation speech more than a year ago in y ounger Metis a n d India ns to of Indian Affairs and the Govof the Indian Affairs department. which he said Indians could be learn this traditional art of na- ernment of Saskatchewan.
Mr. Calder advocated such a · represented through a Senate tive craftsmanship. In addition ,
The federal government will
move in a letter to the Indian appointment.
h e said, sale of crafts would , in pay 50 percent of the cost of conleader, in which h e charged that
" We now hope the Prime Min- a small way, h elp improve the struction with the remainder to
the department has been lax in ister will give the India n people economy of North ern Saskatche- be paid by Saskatchewan. Rural
its administration, mainly be- this represen t ation ."
wan. It would a lso provide for municipalities in areas affected
cause its personnel does not
The brief asked the a ppoint- the tourist trade souvenirs that will construct and maintain the
understand Indian problems.
I ment of a ro yal commission to are truly Canadian.
.
roads .
B.C. Indians Ask Tories
For Vote and Senate Seat
I
I
4
DeceIpber 1957
INDIAN RECORD
New School on D()kis Reserve
By John Bigras
DOKIS RESERVE- Beaming
with pride and joy, 48 little dark
eyes gazed intently at Fred Matters, superintendent of Indian
agents for the Northern Ontario
region, as he turned over the
keys of the smart new one-classroom school to their teacher,
Cecil King. The opening of the
school marks another step towards progress for this small
Ojibway village on the French
The new Betsiamites mission church on the Bers:mis P .Q. Reserve is River, Ontario.
built of red granite. It is the fin dst church ever to be erected on an Indian
A large numb2r of people
reserve in Canada. Fr. L. Labreche, O.M.I., i,s the parish priest.
were on hand to watch the informal, but impressive ceremony.
Band chief Joe Dokis, veteran
mISSIOnary Reverend Leopold
Porcheron, S.J., separate school
NEW YORK-Three Mohawk Indians are among the 116 U.S. inspector R. M. Surtees, Indian
martyrs for whom joint beatification and canonization are being agent Henry Gauthier, and civil
sought. Members of the same race as the Ven. Kateri Tekakwitha, service representative W. E. Sinthe Indians died for the faHh within 12 years after her martyrdom clair assisted at the ceremony.
Most proud parents of the 24
in 1680.
fes,s ed her faith with a sign of pupils attending class in the new
The Lily of the Mohawks, the cross. A kinsman snatched
school were also present despite
quarterly of the Tekakwitha a crucifix from her and cut a
the mud and rain encountered in
League, lists the three as Stephen cross deep into her flesh . She
their walk to the school. Tribe
Tegananoka, martyred in 1609; thanked him for giving her a
elders Frank Dokis and John
Frances Gonannhatenha, 1692; cross she could not lose in death.
Restoule were also on hand to
and Margar·et Garangouas, 1692. After three days of torture, she
watch the proceedings.
All were killed at Onandaga in was stoned to death.
A pine twig used to sprinkle
what is now the Syracuse DioMargar,et was ,t he ~aughter .of holy water during the blessingcese.
the Tododaho, heredItary chIef of the schoolhouse offered a conAuthenticated biographies of
of the Iroquois League. At , trast to the modern, well-lighted
the 11,6 U.S. martyrs are conOnandaga she endured great I school room and adjoining teachtained in the Martyrs of the torments bl,\t uttered only the er's residence. Rev. Porcheron
United States of America, pub- word~ "Jesus, Mary, and Jo- told the children that they
lished by Archbishop John Mark seph. After she had undergone should offer a prayer of thanks
Gannon, Bishop of Erie, after much suff.ering, her body was
extensive study by a commission thrown on a pile of burning
he headed at the request of the wood and was consumed.
American Bishops.
Last O,f Micmac
Stephen, of the S.a ult Saint
MaTie Mission, was captured by $.8 Million Deal
Guides Dies
Cayuga Indians. Mutilated and For Indian Land
tortured, he told his execuLIVERPOOL, N.S. - Samuel
tioners: "I willingly give my life Falls Through
(Sam) Glode, 79, last of Nova
for a God who shed all His Blood
Scotia's famous Micmac Indian
SARN1A. Onto - An $8,000 ,for me." Then they killed him .
guides, died here in November.
000 deal for the sale of Sarnia
Frances, on the scaffold, proA direct descendent of an old
lndian Reserve to New England
Industries Incorp., of New York, Micmac chief referred to in hisChristmas Stockings pas fallen through. Lloyd Wil- tory as Chief Claude, Sam was
According to one legend, the liams, chief of the Sarnia Indian an adventurer, trapper, soldier
and lumberman. He was the last
Christmas stocking owes its ori- band said last month.
gin to an accident. One ChristChief Williams said he was of those who spoke the ancient
mas Eve, a charitable soul who informed the company expressed Micmac language fluently .
wished to assist a poor family willingness to n~gotiate a settleDuring a fiction-book lifewithout revealing his identity, ment with individual m embers time, Sam drove logs on the Exclimbed to the roof of the hum- of the band to compensate them ploits River and hunted caribou
ble home and ' dropped a purse for any losses or damages suf- in Newfoundland. He joined a
down the chimney. Instead of fered through breakdown of the timber cruising outfit in New
falling on the hearth, the purse deal.
Brunswick and led a fishing and
landed in a stocking which had
Many Indians have obtained hunting party through virgin
been hung in the fireplace to sizable loans using their land Alaskan country to beat the andry. Since then, millions of us, options as security, and have nual freeze-up.
rich and poor alike, have hung purchased cars and other expenIn the First World War, Cpl.
our stockings by the fireside on sive items in the expectation of Sam G lode was with the Royal
Christmas Eve to see what they receiving money for their hold- Canadian Engineers in charge of
might catch.
ings.
an eight-man section.
Once while tunnelling 80 feet
C'HILD AT CRIB ,
underground to reach German
"Poor little Jesus looks so cold
lines, Sam and his men were
I wish my hands His hands could hold .
trapped by a fall. Sam ordered
I wonder was His mommy sad
his men to dig themselves out
'Caus'e swaddling clothes were all He had?"
and won the Distinguished Conduct Medal for leading them to
- Helene Stephens
safety.
3 U.S. Mohawk Martyrs
May Be Made Saints
~
to the Almighty who permitted
the erection of the school. He
stressed the importance of education in these modern times.
u.s.
Reservations
May Some Day
Run Out of Indians
(Saturday Evening Post)
The "first" Americans are at
last leaving their bleak and
dreary reservations under a
"crash" program incepted five
years ago.
It all began after World War
II, when the Indian G.r. came
back to the tribal councils and
told of the delights and the
opportunities in the world "outside." Soon, pressures began to
bear on Washington and a relocation, all voluntary, got under
way.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs
currently has twelve relocation
offices set up across the country.
Indian agents go into the reservations, explain the problems and
arrange for a "passport" to civilization. To date, more than
20,000 Indians of various tribes
have found jobs, homes and a
new life under this program.
A typical family may entrain
from the Dakotas bearing tickets
and enough cash to feed them
until they get to San Jose, California, -one of the more important relocation centers. The family is met at the station: lodgings are found; money is provided for a month; jobs are
found; school entrance for the
ehildren is arranged; ministers
are alerted; doctors and clinics
are brought into the picture; furniture and ' lurnishings are provided. Then the family is on its
own.
Only about 25 per cent of the
Indians who broke out of the
"concentration camps" have gone
back home. Mostly, the reason
is loneliness or the lack of acceptance by the community of
choice. But a good measure of
these returnees have , emerged
again to make a new start somewhere else.
Indian employment records
are good and perhaps a little
better than those of their fellow
workers on absenteeism, contact
with police, and alcoholism.
They save their money, go to
church, and maintain decorum
generally.
Many Americans will be
shocked to learn that it wasn't
until 1924 that citizenship was
conferred upon Indians as native-born Americans. They pay
state and Federal taxes, but it
was not until recently that an
Indian could buy a can of beer
or a bottle of firewater. The nation will gain by the integration.
December 1957
INDIAN RECORD
5
Council Director Calls
For Better Understanding
WINNIPEG , Man.-A Winni- 1 - - - - - - -- -- - - - - peg man stUdying the problem services to aid in job adjustment.
of Indians in this province says
Mr. Earle recently completed
the Indian population is increas- 3.n intensive survey of Indian
ing much more rapidly than any prejudice in the Selkirk area .
other ethnic group and their reserves in some cases are no longer able to support them .
The result is that Indians are
arriving in urban centres in
ever-increasing numbers according to Frazer Earle, executive
Dynevor Indian hospital, four
director of the central division
of the Canadian Council of miles north of Selkirk, is being
closed because of reduced inciChristians and Jews .
:fence of tuberculosis among
Fundamental Factors
Mr. Earle said the Indians are Manitoba Indians.
Announcing the closing, Wilbecoming frustrated and hopeliam
Whyte, chairman of the
less. He suggested four " fundamental factors " be recognized in Sanatorium Board of Manitoba,
attempting to understand t he said progress in the treatment
and control of tuberculosis
situation:
among Indians has enabled the
1. The white men must re- board to care for its Indian and
member the Indian has been Eskimo patients at Brandon and
conditioned into distrust of mo- The Pas. Brandon sanatorium
tives; the history of a id' to the has 256 beds and Clearwater
Indian has been one of " pater- Lake sanatorium at The Pas has
nalism and dependency."
'1 190-bed capacity. This concen2. The Indian has a feeling of tration of treatment services in
" personal insecurity and lack of two areas would mean a subself-confidence. ' ,
,tantial saving in costs, he said.
3. He lacks the quality of
The 20 remaining patients at
"acquisitiveness and drive for Dynevor hospital have
personal advancement." This, sransferred to Brandon, Mr.
said Mr. Earle, is " disastrous in Whyte said. Dynevor has accomthe twen tieth cen tury ."
nodation for 55 patients and had
4. Public discrimination is been operated since 1939 by the
common. "He is an embarrassing Sanatorium board for Indian
incongruity in our advancing health services, department of
'lational health and welfare.
Canadian life. "
Commenting on the closing,
Interest and Pride
Dr. E. L. Ross, medical director
Mr. Earle said steps must be of the Manitoba board, said
taken to orient the Indian to the treatment of tuberculosis was
city and its ways. " We must remeeting with more and more
establish and maintain in the success due to early diagnosis,
Indian an interest and pride in
new drugs and modern surgery.
his history and background, as
While it was encouraging that
we have done with other ethnic
the control program had adgroups. "
vanced to the point where it is
There must be a long-range
possible to release some tuberprogram to change the public's
culosis treatment facilities for
attitude toward the Indian, he
')ther purposes, Dr. Ross said,
said.
it was still especially important
He called for special services
that preventive services be
to help the Indian catch up with
maintained or even expanded.
his fellow Canadians: more rigid
" Prevention of the spread
and thorough academic preparainfection is still the foundation
tion, and practical counselling
of tuberculosis control and the
urompt finding of new cases is
the essence of success," said Dr.
Christmas
Ross.
No decision has been made yet
On January 7!
on the futur,e use of
In Ethiopia, Christmas is cele- hospital which is federal govbrated on January 7 because the =rnment property.
Gregorian calendar is not folMr. Whyte said co-operation
lowed there. Last year, on this between Indian health services
date, Fides Service reported , and the Sanatorium board
some 5,000 pupils from the Manitoba had resulted in a comschools of Addis Ababa passed prehensive and co-ordinated
before the Emperor and Empress attack on tuberculosis throughof Ethiopia to receive a woolen out the province. While 166
shirt and a packet of sweets as Manitoba Treaty Indians died
a Christmas gift. All the teachers t uberculosis in 1940, only 22
who assisted in the distribution ~ uberculosis deaths were reof gifts were entertained at a '9orted in 1956, with a larger
buffet lunch.
!ndian population.
Dynevor
Hospital
Now Closed
FOX LAKE, AL T A.-The Sis,t ers of Ste. Chretienne are now at the- Fox
Lake Indian Res,e rve dayschool in the vicariate of Grouard, Northern Alberta.
One of them is a teacher, another is a nurse and a third is housekeeper.
Sr. Ste-Jeanne-Marie is superior. They are learning the Cree- language under
the direction of the residing missionary, Fr. Paul Vantroys, O.M.1.
Small Dokis Indian Band
Very Progressive
OTT AWA-Members of the small Dokis Indian band
of Northern Ontario are completing a 14-mile ac'c ess road
to rich timber stands, as the climax of a two-year, $150 000
development progr,a m . on their reserve.
Nearly every able-bodied man , - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - took part in the project with and loading dock on the French
little outside help, says Indian River and put up guard rails on
News, published by the Indian a Bailey bridge. School children
affairs branch of the federal de- were given a half-day off from
partment of citizenship and classes to celebrate completion
immigration.
of the bridge.
The new road , which will enFuture building plans call for
able the band to tap abundant a community hall and more
stands of yellow birch veneer housing. Already, many of the
hardwood and pulp softwood on houses have taken advantage of
the 30,000-acre reserve of the electricity to bring in television
Nipissing agency, links up with and other modern equipment.
a provincial road in Latchford
Township, 80 miles north of
Classes Revive
North Bay.
Ends Isolation
The new road also will result
in closer contact between the
Dokis and neighboring settlements and will eliminate hazardous lake and river crossings.
In the past, the Dokis were
isolated during spring break-up
and the fall freeze-up, and at
least four persons have died in
recent years while trying to
cross thin ice.
The band, however, is not content merely to build a road .
Early last spring, it completed a
3 % -mile right-of-way to bring
electric power to the reserve and
cut and installed poles for the
line. By supplying labor and
ma terials the band obtained light
and power at comparatively
small cost.
The band also built a wharf
Mohawk Language
A weekly series of classes to
teach the Mohawk language
opened r'e cently in Ohsweken,
at the David Thomas Memorial
Hall.
The class enrolled 31 pupils,
mostly adults. Only five could
speak the language and they
joined to learn how to read
Mohawk.
Miss Julia Jamieson , the organizer, expressed pleasure with
the response. The move is a first
step to revive the Mohawk language, basic language of the Six
Nations Indians, and to preserve
their culture and tradition.
The class started to make a
dictionary and watched a demonstration by Mrs. Marjorie
General of the art of making
corn husk dolls .
6
INDIAN RECORD
December 1957
Finds Mongolian Influen,ce
Early Northern Cultures
OTTA WA-Builders of the Alaska Highway in 1942
followed a migration route used by Asian tribes 6,000 to
8,000 years ago, according to archaeological evidence discovered this summer in the Southern Yukon Territory by
Dr. Richard S. MacNeish, chief archaeologist of the Human
History Branch, National Museum of Canada.
Mrs. Sophie Friday, an Ojibway widow, whose late husband willed copper
claims worth around $200,000, near Temagami, Ontario, las,t fall.
Sisters Of St. Ann, Pioneers
Of Education In British Columbia
VANCOUVER, B.C . (CCC)-The Sisters of St. Ann are popula~ly and rightly called the pioneers of Cat~olic education in
British Columbia. On the feast of St. Ann, thIS year, they celebrated the opening of their hundredth year of service to the Church
in the province.
The Victoria Daily Colonis,t ,
marking the centennial year,
wrote of the Sisters: "Throughout British Columbia, the nursing ,a nd teaching Sisters of St.
Ann have woven themselves into
the fabric of the once isol,a ted
frontier mission on enduring and
highly r,e spected basis."
The Sisters of St. Ann ar,e a
Canadian 'orde~, founded in 1847
by Marie Esther Blondin , Mother
Mary Ann.
Ten years later, the infant
community responded to the call
of Bishop Modeste Demers for
teacher,s for his dioc·e se of
wilderness, covering New Caldonia, Vancouver Island, AI,a ska
and the Queen Charlotte Islands.
At that time there were only
45 sisters in the ,entire congregation and all 45 volunteered for
the 'dangerous mission . Four
were chosen and made the twomonth trek across the American
continent to open their first
school, St. Ann's Academy in
Victoria.
Today, 100 years after the
heroic pioneer work of those
four sisters, there are 293 Sisters
of St. Ann in that Western Province they helped ' build. . The
apostolic zeal of these Canadian
nuns is exercised in 24 schools
and missions, eight hospitals, and
two homes for the aged.
Anthropologica
Nos. 4 and 5
OTTA W A - Two volumes of
Anthropologica have been published recently by the Research
Center for Amerindian Anthropology of the University of Ottawa.
Volume 4: contains notes on
Tahltan oral literatur,e, a report
on two XVIIth century Micmac
"Copper Kettle" burials, a biobibliography of Diamond J enness, the POOLE field letter,s ,
notes on the Indians of the
provinoe of Ontario (by the
Editor of the Indian Record), a
study on the soci,a l organization
of the Mont1agnais-Naskapi, a
study on cultural relativism, by
Maroel Rioux, of the National
Museum and the text of a conference by Fr. A. Renaud, O .M.I.,
on the "Canadian of Indian descent."
Volume 5 reports on the Malecites of Woodstock, N.B., Art
and Science in Anthropology, the
social problems of the Ojibwa
Indians in northwestern Ontario,
gathering ethno-linguistic data,
Traces of six cultures were struck off blades to use as tools . .
found in 97 ancient camp-sites Comparison with illustrations
during a survey of approximate- and detailed descriptions of obly 62,000 square miles between jects found in Outer Mongolia
Dawson and Whitehorse. Objects enabled Dr. MacNeish to identify
found on 28 of the sites closely some of the tools as Asian in
resemble those found in Outer origin .
Mongolia by Swedish and AmerThe Mongolian discoveries are
ican expeditions, suggesting that believed to be between 6,000 and
the people who used them were 8,000 years old and the relics of
recent arrivals from Eastern the first or second of the six
Asia.
cultures. The six cultures seem
"This material provides the unrelated to the nine civilizastrongest factual support yet for tions whose relics were disthe theory that there were suc- covered by Dr. MacNeish on the
cessive waves of migration and banks of the Firth River in the
influence from Asia to North northern Yukon in 1955. The
America," Dr. MacNeish said. Firth River peoples appear to
" Artifacts with some Mongolian have moved along the Arctic
characteristics have been found coast and perhaps .down the
before in Alaska, the Yukon, and Mackenzie Valley ' and lived the
British Columbia. Howe v e r, nomadic lives of hunters. The
many of the 1,000 artifacts col- time relation between the Firth
lected this summer have a more River culture and those of the
striking similarity to complexes southern Yukon will not be esfound in Mongolia and-'establish tablished until further research
a more definite link between the is carried out.
tribes of Asia and the ancient inThe southern Yukon sites offer
habitants of the interior of North a wealth of material for future
America. "
study. In addition to the remains
The archaeologist bel i eve s of six civilizations, there are two
these ancient cultures moved - sites near Dawson which Dr.
from Asia through the interior of MacN eish describes as "considerAlaska to the mountainous re- ably different from anything
gions of ine Yukon and B.C. and else we found and perhaps much
then further south . He deduces older." He stressed that this
from the occurrence of their summer's discoveries were only
camps on the beaches of former the incidental results of a prelarge lakes that they were fisher- liminary survey undertaken to
men and did less hunting in the locate and assess a number of
forests than other ' civilizations sites - that could be profitably
of the North whose life was explored later. Many of the sites
based on hunting.
may eventually disappear beThese beaches, which now re- neath the waters of large power
main as terraces above the developments planned for the
modern lakes, yielded riches to Yukon, but there is now suffiDr. MacNeish's party. A wide cient information to enable Dr.
variety of stone tools, choppers MacNeish to organize future exand :Knives, and crude burins or peditions that will collect the
slotting tools were found. Among valuable archaeological matethe distinctive Mongolian mate- rial before it is lost.
rials were stone "tongue-shaped"
Dr. MacNeish's field assistants
cores from which the people during the summer were Mark
Molot and Reginald Hamel, two
remarks on the concep.t of "folk university students of Ottawa.
society" and peasant society, and
a hi,s torical note on the origin of
Died at 93
syllaibic writing by Fr. L. P.
Vaillancourt, O.M.I.
Mr,s. Jennie Duck Chief, who
A special issue of , Anthropo- died recently at the age of '9 3,
logica, bearing on the concrete was the widow of the last tradiproblems aTising from the integr,a tion, c'hristianization and la d_ tional life-time chief of the
Duck
ministration of the Indian and Blackfoot Indians
Eskimo population of Canada is Chief, her husband, died in 1948,
now in pr,eparation for the and since that time she had made
Spring issue of Anthropologica. her home with their nephew and
Each volume of Anthropolo- adopted son,Rosary DlJ.ck Chief
gica is of about 1-60 pp. They . . . They had no children of
are aVla ilable for sale at The
Research Center For Amerindian their own . . . Her funer,a l was
Anthropology, Oblate Ave., Ot- held at the Catholic Mission in
Cluny, Alta.
tawa, Onto
December 1957
INDIAN RECORD
7
The Christmas Cri'b
A Sicilian legend , suggested
by the figures commonly used
in the Crib, says that the Blessed
Virgin, like any mother, was
grateful for the warm breath of
the ox, but fearful lest the donkey's bray might terrify her
newborn Babe.
Depicting the Manger seems
to have been in practice long
before 1223, the year in which
St. Francis of Assisi built the
Crib at Greccio. But to St. Francis should go the credit for introducing the Manger into the
home. According to the Libel'
Pontificalis, the custom of constructing a Manger of portable
scenery and figures was widespread before the thirteenth century.
By the eighteenth century,
there was great competition
among craftsmen in producing
original designs - clay figures
with eyes of glass , and animals
of every kind made principally
in terra cotta although larger
ones were carved from wood.
There were jewelers, goldsmiths ,
. Cau.gh,nawaga In'dians yisite,d the Jesu,it Martyrs' s'h rine at Auriesville, N.Y., wher,e they suf,f ere,d martyrceramists and carvers who dedidom In 1642-46. lihey welTe a'ccom,pan,ied by Fr. L. Devaney, S.J. The monument is a statue o,f sain't Isaac J
cated most of their skill to pro- Th'e Jesuit Martyrs' feast is celebr'a ted Se'pt. 26.
ogues.
ducing Cribs. Sammartino (17201793) developed a new school in
this special art. Dispensing with
Why Th-ree Masses
academic practice, he used as his
models various types of common
At Christmas?
people, caught in their most
Decem ber 4th , 1957
characteristic poses and expresAbout the middle of the fifth
sions.
Dear boy s and girls:
century, St. Leo the Great authorized priests to repeat the
Merry Christmas ! B y the time this letter reaches you
Indians Visited Pope celebration of Mass on great these two words will be :epeated all over the country, on card~
feasts so that no one might be and posters ,. over .the radIO , by telephone and by people visiting
Lt is recounted that one day,
each other m theIr homes or meeting on the street.
during the reign of Pope Pius XI, deprived of the privilege of
. Merry Christmas! The birth of Jesus , Son of God , brought
lssisting
at
the
divine
mysteries.
three North American Indians ,
happmess to us men b ecause He was coming to redeem each one
The
custom
of
three
Masses
on
in their picturesque garb, ac'·
of us . Hence , by wishing Merry Christmas to relatives and friends
companied by an elderly Bene- Christmas - at first, ' r estricted
~e are expressi~g the hope that they, as individuals , will shar ~
dictine missionary, came to seek to bishops - was introduced in- m the RedemptIOn of Christ and eventually reach Heaven.
to
France
wh
en
Charlemagne
an audience with His · Holiness.
~u~ ~he fir~t Christmas brought another blessing to men,
One of them , explained the ?sta blished the Roman Rite in
not as mdIvIduals m need of Salvation , but as members of commupriest, had sold his home in or- his states. Little by lit tle, this nities and nations , living on the same planet . " Peace on Earth! "
der to. make the trip. He went practice b ecame ge n eral. Since sang the Angels. In other words: " By Christ's Birth and Death
on to exp'l ain that they had the twelfth century , all priest s you a.re offered a chance to reach Heaven and be eternally happy:
arrived the previous evening, have had the privilege of cele- By hIS example and teachings, you are also invited to make life
and were leaving again that brating three consecut ive Masses in this world more pleasant, through mutual understanding and
afternoon, after having recited on Christmas.
brotherly love. Peace b etween yourselves and among nations !"
the Credo at the tomb of St.
It is nice to remember the first reason why God became
Peter. Ther e is naught else they
Many liturgists attach a mys- Man and to wish everybody Merry Christmas. But it would be
wish to see in Rome - they wish
tical significance to the three nice also to recall the greetings of the Angels and to put it in
to depart with the sole memory
Masses
: The first , at midnight or ~ra~t~ce between nations , of course, but more immediately between
of their meeting with the Pope
mdIvIduals of the same nation who do not share the same beliefs
to last them the rest of their ~efore dawn on Christmas morn- or the same background.
ing,
signifies
the
darkness
of
the
lives.
Fo: that reason I think Christmas should mean something
They were accorded a private world before the birth of Christ ; very speCIal to you. You know very well what I am talking about .
the
Mass
at
dawn
,
the
grace
audience with ,t he Holy Father ,
Fro~ your for~father~ , you have inherited ways of thinking,
and sank to, their knees as soon brought into the world with the feehng and talkmg whIch are different from those of people like
as they were shown into the coming of Christ; the third , in myself whose ancestors came from Europe. Yet, we have to live
anti-chamber. When the Pope the full light of day, the abun- together in the same country, doing the same things in school and,
entered the room they advanced dant graces in which the world later on, at work and elsewhere as adults . If we want to live up
to meet him on their knees, and may participate now that the to the message of the Angels, we must try to understand each
Redeemer has been born.
kissed hi,s feet.
other, respect each other's differences and still agree to share
equally in the good things Canada offers to all its residents.
If we do so among ourselves as Canadians of different
MARY SI'N'GS .
racial origin, not only will we enjoy living together , but we will
" My soul the Lord doth magnify
be able to help other nations get along with us and with each
Who sends His blessings from on high
other. Merry Christmas then , but also Peace on earth and GoodAnd maketh me , his humblest daughter ,
will between men!
The fountain of the Living Water."
Best wishes to y our parents and Happy Holiday s .
- Patricia Phelan
Andre RENAUD , O .M.l. ·
Father Renaud's Monthly Letter
8
INDIAN RECORD
December 19 57
PICTORIAL RE'PORT
on the
AMOS INDIAN
RESI DENTIAL
SCHOOL
(P.Q.)
(Photos by L. R. Lafleur, O.M.I.)
The Amos Ind ian pupils enjoy one of t'he most modern and best equip.ped Reside ntia l Schools in Canada. The
Abitibi country, both in climate and in the peop,le's way of life, is very similar to that o·f Western Canada.
This new Indian Resid ential
School, located in the Abitibi
district of the Province of Quebec, was opened in October 19'5 5.
2·03 pupils are now in attend-
ance. The staff compr ises two three lay teachers, one manual
Oblate Fathers, four Ob late L ay training instructor and nine InB rothers, 13 S isters of St . F ran- d ila n maids.
cis of A ssisi (six are tea chers) ,
Early in November, a CBC
mobile unit filmed a 15-minute
program for television, which
was shown on the CB C-TV
F'r ench network, December 1st.
T he Jun ior Hockey team is building up quite a reputation j t he ir second
Full dress rehearsal for t he Christ ma s c:oncert. The pupils are shown
season is now well under way.
here with School Princ:ipal Fr. Maurice Greno n, O.M . 1.
~ oc key