EXPLORATION OF THE PRAIRIES, 1879 135 



Tupper became Minister of Railways and, in the winter of 1878, 

 arrangements were made to send ten parties to the prairie and 

 the country north to Jasper and report on the value of the country. 

 (Sir) Mackenzie Bowell was appointed Minister of Commerce and, 

 in the winter, informed me of what had been decided by the 

 Government for the next summer, and asked me if I would lead 

 one of the parties. I refused unless they appointed me per- 

 manently to a position that I had in view, but I did not mention 

 that to him. After consultation with Sir Charles, Mr. Bowell wrote 

 me to say that Sir Charles would make me permanent as long as 

 they were in power, but he would not promise it any longer. 

 When this was decided, I resigned my position in Albert College 

 and, late in April, 1879, went to Ottawa and met Sir Charles and 

 Mr. Fleming. 



The leaders of our ten parties were in Ottawa at this time 

 and we were each called in to make an estimate of what amount 

 we would need in order to carry out our explorations. None of 

 the surveyors would make an estimate and I, in my innocence, 

 immediately sat down and made out my estimate and, after I 

 made it out, I doubled it and took the doubled estimate in to 

 Mr. Fleming and he looked it over and told me it was excellent. 

 While I was with him, a surveyor called O'Keefe, belonging to 

 Hamilton, came in and was asked to make out his estimate, and 

 he immediately said that he was unable to do so and he was 

 told that he had better look over mine and give in something like 

 it. Whether he did so or not, I cannot say. I went back home 

 and was made, by the authorities of Albert College, Emeritus 

 Professor, and I have retained the title ever since. I shortly 

 afterwards went to Ottawa to receive my instructions and found 

 that I was the only one commissioned to explore on the prairie. 

 All the others were to examine the country which was then called 

 the "Fertile Belt" and northward. 



I received my instructions from Sir Sandford Fleming but 

 Col. Dennis, who was Deputy Minister of the Interior, wrote 

 them. Until many years later, I did not know why this had been 

 done. I may state here what my instructions were. I was to 

 proceed to Fort Ellice and take the trail there for Edmonton and, 



