ROYAL INSTITUTION OF GREAT BRITAIN 5094 ROYAL NORTHWEST MOUNTED POLICE 



miles long and is located in Fremont County 

 in Central Colorado. The steep sides of the 

 canyon rise on either side to a height of 3,000 

 feet, and in the bed the river flows tumultu- 

 ously over rapids. One of the most remarkable 

 features of the gorge is the wonderful variety 

 of rock colors. 



ROYAL INSTITUTION OF GREAT BRIT- 

 AIN, an organization founded in London by 

 Count Rumford in 1799, "for the promotion, 

 diffusion and extension of science and useful 

 knowledge." The original plan was to spread 

 information on physics and mechanics among 

 the laboring classes by means of public lec- 

 tures, but the lecturers secured for this pur- 

 pose gave the organization such fame that all 

 classes of students were attracted and large 

 laboratories had to be erected. Such men as 

 Faraday, Tyndall and Gladstone were among 

 its instructors, and many of the most valuable 

 discoveries in physics and chemistry, especially 

 in light and heat, were made in its laboratories. 

 The work has always been done in the most 

 simple and popular manner possible, and the 

 lectures are always extremely practical and up- 

 to-date. 



There is a splendid library of about 70,000 

 volumes on scientific subjects, while the equip- 

 ment for physical and chemical experiments 

 is one of the most valuable in Great Britain. 

 The Institution has received numerous bequests 

 and is thus able to assist young scientists in 

 their researches. All members of the society 

 are elected by ballot; they maintain the school 

 and experiments by means of an admission fee 

 and annual subscription. 



ROYAL NORTHWEST MOUNTED POLICE, 

 popularly known throughout Canada as the 

 "mounties," is the police force of the North- 

 west. The jurisdiction of the mounted police 

 covers all of the territory which has ever been a 

 part of the North West Territories, including 

 the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and 

 Manitoba. 



Its Beginnings. After the Dominion govern- 

 ment in 1870 acquired formal control of the 

 Canadian Northwest, it faced the new problem 

 of governing a territory extending approxi- 

 mately 900 miles from east to west, and some- 

 what more from north to south. The Red 

 River Rebellion and minor disturbances in the 

 Northwest showed the need of some control 

 over the section if it was ever to be open to 

 permanent settlers. To Sir John A. Macdon- 

 ald belongs much of the credit for the idea of 

 a mounted police force and for its successful 



adoption, although the force was actually or- 

 ganized during Alexander Mackenzie's Min- 

 istry. 



The Act of Parliament establishing the force 

 provided that all the police were to be mounted 

 and efficiently equipped, but with as little bril- 

 liant display as possible. No person, said the 

 Act, was to be appointed to the force "unless 

 he be of sound constitution, able to ride, active 

 and able-bodied, of good character, and be- 

 tween the ages of eighteen and forty years; 

 nor unless he be able to read and write the 

 English or French language." The minimum 

 age was later increased to twenty-two. From 

 the very first the mounted police force has 

 attracted a high grade of men. University men 

 and sons of peers have served in the ranks with 

 the humblest. One of the best-known names 

 in the English language, Dickens, appears in 

 the record of the force because Francis Dick- 

 ens, a son of Charles Dickens, was for several 

 years an inspector. The work of the "mounties" 

 requires thinking, and these men think for 

 themselves. A trooper may be called on in 

 emergencies to act in almost any conceivable 

 capacity. Consequently the police are a body 

 of self-reliant men. 



The organization of the force was begun in 

 the autumn of 1873. By October about 150 

 men had been sent to the temporary head- 

 quarters at Fort Garry, and on June 4, 1874, 

 three divisions (about 200 men) left Toronto 

 for the Northwest by way of Chicago, Saint 

 Paul and Fargo. From Fargo they proceeded 

 on horseback westward to the Saskatchewan. 

 The hardships of this overland march are a 

 part of the history of the great Northwest. 

 How the police established their posts, how 

 they broke up the illegal trade in whisky and 

 stolen horses and cattle, how they won the 

 fear and later the confidence of the Indians, 

 how they really made possible the settlement 

 of the Territories these should be familiar 

 stories to every school child. 



Its Duties. There is scarcely a department 

 of the Canadian government- that is not as- 

 sisted by these hardy troopers. Along the 

 United States border they act as customs offi- 

 cials, preventing smuggling. They carry the 

 mails to the distant settlements, they report on 

 the condition of the roads, bridges, crops and 

 weather, they fight prairie and forest fires, they 

 take the census, and they often act informally 

 as arbitrators or judges between settlers who 

 have had disputes. They help travelers and 

 are frequently called on to take care of the sick 



