Tlie Social Customs and Aniusenieiits of the Early Days in the 

 Red River Settlement and Rupert's Ijanc. 



A Paper read before the Historical and Scientific Society of Manitoba on the 24th 



of January, 189S. 



Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen. 



A short time ago during my absence 

 from the City on holidays, a meeting of 

 the Executive Council of the Historical 

 Society was held, and at that meeting it 

 was decided that among other papers 

 that should be read during this present 

 society year, there should be one by my- 

 self, and the subject was practically laid 

 down on which I was to write. I, of 

 course, was not there to enter a protest 

 or to exercise my Presidential authority 

 and rule the matter out of order. When 

 I returned I found that protesting was of 

 no avail as there seemed to be positive 

 determination that I should do something 

 for the Society that honored me on two 

 occasions by electing me their President. 

 I felt somewhat guilty of dereliction of 

 duty and submitted meekly and with as 

 much grace as I could. 



The delicate subject selected for this 

 paper is a wide one, and I trust that its 

 incompleteness and shortcomings will be 

 attributed to the unworthy hands in 

 which it has been placed rather than to 

 the subject itself 



It must be remembered here that as the 

 population of the settlement was small 

 there was no great diversity of amuse- 

 ments or of social functions in the Old 

 Days, but such as they were they were 

 plain and simple and to the mind of the 

 writer particularly enjo)-able. 



In order to make a paper of any re- 

 spectable length it will be necessary to 

 digress from the text assigned me by my 

 colleagues (I know I shall be pardoned by 

 the clerg3'men present, as it is said that 

 even they digress at times from their 

 subjects.) 



I will not here state how far back in 

 the Red River days my own recollection 

 goes, as it is not deemed necessary to 

 state my age, but suffice it is to say that 

 I well remember the " Good Old Days." 

 One of my earliest recollections of festi- 

 vities (and they were of such a boisterous 

 character as to make a lasting impression 

 on my mind) was the return of the Boat- 

 men — as they were called — from York 

 Factory. A short description of this in- 

 teresting and at the same time very 

 necessary personage may not be out of 

 place, although most of you are familiar 

 with the character, but few have seen 

 him in his pristine glory. 



The Boatman, Voyageur or Tripman, 

 as he was variously called, belonged to 

 that class of settlers who did not farm 

 sufficiently to make them independent of 

 of the Hudson's Bay Co. or general mer- 

 chant. The trips to York Factory were 

 two in the year, known as the summer 

 and fall trips. These were made for the 

 purpose of bringing goods landed at York 

 by the Hudson's Bay ships which brought 

 cargoes of supplies for the interior, in- 

 cluding the Red River. 



These Boatmen were generally engaged 

 during the winter preceding the voyage. 

 If a man ran short of anything and had 

 not the money wherewith to purchase, 

 or something to exchange for the com- 

 modit}' required, he went to the Hudson's 

 Bay Company's store or to some general 

 merchant or freighter and got an advance 

 and agreed to pay for same by going to 

 York. He was then bound to be ready 

 to start about the first of June. In a crew 

 of eight men there was generally found 

 one who furnished fun for the others or 

 who, from some peculiarity, was made 

 the butt of the party. There was gener- 

 ally a fiddle or two in the crowd and lots 

 of men who could play it. I am told by 

 a gentleman personally cognizant of the 

 fact, that in one instance there was a 

 boat's crew, where the fiddle was passed 

 down from the steersman to the bowsman 

 and every man in the boat could play it. 

 It was said on these trips when a flat 

 stone was found, it was at once utilized 

 as a ball-room floor, and each man in 

 turn "hoed it down " to the enlivening 

 strains of the fiddle. When the different 

 brigades met at York Factory and whilst 

 waiting for their cargoes, I am told by 

 gentlemen who have witnessed the scenes 

 of boisterous hilarity and continued festi- 

 vities that it simply (to use a purely 

 original phrase) "beggars description." 



Upon their return to the Red River 

 and immediately upon unloading their 

 boats, a goodly .supply of the "ardent" 

 was broached, and they proceeded to 

 to make "Rome howl." It was gener- 

 ally looked upon as a way (a little noisy, 

 if you like) they had of celebrating a safe 

 return from a more or less dangerous and 

 perilous voyage. 



In those early days people were 

 "married and given in marriage," and I 

 believe the custom prevails even in our 



