CHAPTER X 

 1879-1880 



Review of Conditions in Canada in Regard to Politics and 

 the Construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway — 

 Confederation — Purchase of Land from the Hudson's 

 Bay Company — First Riel Rebellion — Exploration for 

 Route of C.P.R. — Contradictory Statements in Regard 

 to Value of Prairies for Agriculture — Fourth Explor- 

 ation of the Canadian North- West, 1880 — Qu'Appelle 

 Valley, Moose Jaw, Old Wives Lakes, Swift Current, 

 Cypress Hills, Fort Walsh, Humboldt, etc. — Meetings 

 with Indians — Many Interesting Episodes and Inci- 

 dents.. 



WHEN we reached Canada in the year 1850, Ontario was 

 then called Upper Canada and Quebec was known as 

 Lower Canada. These two provinces were united and 

 held Parliaments alternately in Quebec and Ontario. After a 

 certain amount of discussion, it was decided to have a Capital 

 for these two provinces, and Queen Victoria was asked to make a 

 selection. She did so and selected Ottawa, which was then called 

 Bytown. Immediately, a commencement was made to erect 

 Parliament Buildings that would be permanent and, in 1867, the 

 buildings were completed and occupied. Before this time, nego- 

 tiations had been carried on with the Maritime Provinces, that is, 

 Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Con- 

 federation was carried and John A. Macdonald and George Brown 

 buried the hatchet and united, to perfect the Confederation. It 

 took some little time to cause George Brown to leave the Govern- 

 ment, and the two parties, called Tories and Reformers, were 

 organized again. John A. Macdonald, as soon as he got in power, 

 resolved to carry on what he had advocated years before; that is, 

 the purchase of the Hudson's Bay Territories from the Company. 

 This was carried into effect in 1869, the year I was on Lake 



