Judge Thom, was the head of the legal, the 

 other, McCallum, of the educational, interests 

 of the wide extent of Rupert's Land. Origin 

 ally the boarding-school had been begun 

 under the auspices of the Church Missionary 

 Society, but at the time of the vieit of 

 Dr. Mountain, Bishop of Montreal, to Red 

 River in 1844, a change had taken 

 place, for he says, "It is now 

 conducted by Mr. McCallum on his 

 own account with the help of an allowance 

 from the company. It is really a nice estab- 

 lishment, and the premises attached to it have 

 more neatness and finish than is common in 

 young and remote settlements. The youths 

 have a separate garden for their own amuse- 

 ment." Mr. McCallum had by his patience 

 and industry taken such a hold on the com 

 munity that on the visit of the 



BISHOP OF MONTREAL 



it was deemed advisable to ordain him, which 

 event took place on 7th of July, 1844. Mr. 

 McCallum's duties not only included the 

 school but for the next three years the 

 incumbency of the parish church, which thea 

 reckoned amongst its hearers all the people of 

 Kildonan. Judge Thom had for several years 

 taken up his abode at Lowei Fort Garry, where 

 his wife and children Uved with him. In the 

 year 1846 the British Government being 

 in the midst of the contention with the United 

 States over the Oregon question and probably 

 on account of the enforcement ot the company's 

 claims thought it wise to send out the 6th 

 Royal regiment to Red Ri ver The Lower 

 Fort being required for the troops Judge 

 Thom was compelled to seek quarters else- 

 where and seems to have lived, for a year, 

 three or four miles '■■his side of the fv.rt. In 

 1847 he purchased the house, then just built 

 by Chief Factor Charles, in which the Bishop 

 of Rupert's Land now lives, and which is well 

 known as Bishop's Court. Judge Thom refers 

 with peculiar pleasure to the changes which 

 had made him "door neighbor" to his old 

 friend, McCallum, "with nothing but a pad- 

 dock between." The school was now at its 

 height for there were in it more than fifty 

 paying pupils, including girls. From 

 it came A. K. Isbister, one of the 

 most distinguished men born in Rupert's 

 Land, and to the " McCallum school " mem- 

 bers of the older generation of Red River 

 settlers look back with fond affection. Sad 

 indeed was it for education and religion on 

 Red River that Mr. McCallum died in 1849. 

 Judge Thom became his executor and Bishop 

 Anderson, the first Bishop of Rupert's Land, 

 arrived just in time to perform the funeral 

 services ot the worthy teacher. 

 ST. John's college. 

 On Mr. McCallum's death the school imme- 

 diately began to decline. Bishop Anderson 

 was so busy with the other duties of his office 

 that the institution was suffered to languish. 

 In 1855 a reorganization was attempted, a 

 number of the leading people of the 

 country were formed into a college board, 

 the name of St. John's college was chosen, and 

 the coat of arms, with the beautiful motto 

 "In Thy Light Shall we see Light," adopted. 



In three or four years the want of success 

 compelled the closing of the college. In 1865 

 the present Bishop of Rupert's Land arrived 

 at Red River. The McCallum school build- 

 ings had become a ruin. On his leaving on 

 his first journey in his diocese the bishop gave 

 orders that they should be pulled down. This 

 was partially done, but ths central 

 building was thought good enough to 

 be preserved. It was accordingly spar- 

 ed, and those who have come to Mani 

 toba even in recent years may remember 

 the house occupied by the Rev. SamuelPritch 

 ard — the remnant of the McCallum buildings. 

 Bishop Machray refounded St. John's College 

 in 1866, from which time it has tiad an ever 

 increasing and prosperous existence. Mr. 

 McCallum's widow and daughter, who are 

 still living, invested a sum of money for St. 

 John's college and the excellent anomemeter,a 

 good microscope and other instruments have 

 been supplied from this source. Judge Thom 

 always took a deep interest in St. John's 

 college, being one of its honorary fellows and 

 was also a benefactor of Manitoba college. 



JUDGE THOM IN PUBIIC. 



From his high position and public sympa- 

 thies. Judge Thom became a most influential 

 inan in the Red River settlement. He had a 

 marvellous gift of language, and in such a 

 primitive society as that of Red River, was 

 sure to be looked ujj to by many as an oracle. 

 He was exceedingly approachable, and his 

 ardent temperament led him to do all sorts of 

 kind services for those who sought his assist- 

 ance. When the bishopric of Rupert's Land 

 was founded, he became the registrar ; when 

 the Kildonan church wanted a deed he drew it 

 up, and made it so firm in its provisions that 

 when changes were necessary a few years ago 

 in the tenure they were very difficult 

 to make. Though the agent of the 

 Hudson Bay company, and therefore bound 

 to carry out the policy of the company, 

 as to not encouraging the entrance of too 

 many religious bodies on Red River, he is 

 said to have had a hand at the same time in 

 framing the petitions forwarded to London by 

 the Presbyterians of Kildonan. Rev. John 

 Ryerson, on his visit to Red River in 1854, 

 tells of his going down to Kildonan to hear 

 a lecture from Judge Thom "On the state and 

 progress of the Red River Settlement, " and 

 the hearer says that ths subject was treated 

 "with great elegance, beauty and ability." 

 In the cDuncil held at Fort Garry the judge 

 was a leading spirit, and we are told that by 

 the people generally "his influence was re- 

 garded as disproportionately great." The 

 council being looked upon as the instrument 

 of the Hudson's Bay Corhpany, it is quite 

 evident that his being a ruling influence in 

 that body would subject him to severe criti- 

 cism by the people, and that to a certain 

 extent his influence 



AS A JUDGE 



would be lost. As already stated, the rela- 

 tions of the settlers on the Red Rivei to the 

 Hudson Bay company had become very un- 

 satisfactory. The company, by their charter, 

 no doubt had a monoroly of the fur trade. 



