HARDSHIPS KNOWN, AND UNKNOWN THAT KILLED EVEN THE HARDIEST PIONEER
WHEN IT COMES RIGHT DOWN TO IT, I HAVE WORKED ON THIS PIONEER-ERA RESEARCH, AS MUCH FROM A SENSE OF DUTY, AS FROM MY OWN PASSION FOR THE HOMESTEAD CHRONICLE OF OUR REGION. I FEEL, AS AN HISTORIAN, A DUTY TO REPRESENT THIS PERIOD, AND EXPOSE THE WAY MULTIPLE LEVELS OF GOVERNANCE, MISLEAD THE EMIGRANTS, LOOKING TO CANADA, AND NORTH AMERICA GENERALLY, AS THE PROMISED LAND. INSTEAD OF BEING THE ANSWER TO THEIR PRAYERS, THE SETTLER-CLASS OF EMIGRANTS, WAS INTRODUCED TO THE FULL EXTENT OF THE LIES, TOLD TO THEM, AND WRITTEN INTO BOOKLETS, ABOUT THE GOOD LIFE THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO CREATE FOR THEMSELVES, AND FAMILIES, IN THE WILDS OF OUR COUNTRY. AS A DIRECT RESULT OF MISINFORMATION, AND WEAK-TEA WARNINGS, ABOUT THE PERILS IN THESE SAME WILD WOODS, URBAN REFUGEES, FROM THE CITIES OF THE OLD WORLD, WERE SHUTTLED INTO THE BUSHLAND OF MUSKOKA AND PARRY SOUND, DURING THE FREE LAND GRANTS PERIOD, WHICH BEGAN IN AND AROUND 1868. THOSE WITH ANY PHYSICAL DISABILITIES, WHO DIDN'T THINK IT WOULD BE A PROBLEM, ON THE HOMESTEAD ACREAGE, SOON DISCOVERED THAT THEY WERE PARTICULARLY VULNERABLE, EVEN TO DEATH, SIMPLY BY THE PREVAILING, ALWAYS DANGEROUS CONDITIONS. IF THEY DIDN'T FREEZE TO DEATH, THEY MIGHT HAVE STARVED, OR BEEN ACCIDENTALLY PINNED TO THE GROUND BY A GIANT PINE, THAT FELL THE WRONG WAY. MY PASSION, I SUPPOSE, IS TO OFFER THE MEMORIES OF THESE PIONEERS, AND THEIR FAMILIES, THAT STILL RESIDE HERE TODAY, A BELATED CREDIT, AND THANK YOU, FOR BEING THE TRUE FOUNDERS OF OUR REGION; AND THE ORIGINATORS OF THE TRUE AND HONEST MUSKOKA LIFESTYLE; THAT HAD A LOT TO DO WITH HARDSHIP AND HOW TO OVERCOME IT, IN ORDER TO LEAD A RELATIVELY NORMAL LIFE. A TRADITION, YOU MIGHT SAY, CREATED INITIALLY, AS A SURVIVAL ART THAT MATURED, AND IMBEDDED, IN THE RESOLVE OF THE WIDER RURAL COMMUNITY OF OUR DISTRICT.
EACH OCTOBER, SUZANNE AND I PUT TOGETHER OUR OWN TRADITIONAL THANKSGIVING, BASED ON THE HEROICS AND RESILIENT FAITH OF THE HOMESTEADERS TO SURVIVE. AS SUZANNE'S FAMILY ARRIVED IN THE UFFORD AREA, OF THE TOWNSHIP OF MUSKOKA LAKES, AS FAR BACK AS 1862, WE FEEL OUR FAMILY IS PRETTY WELL IMBEDDED IN THIS PIONEER LEGACY. THIS SERIES IS ONE OF OUR CONTRIBUTIONS, TO CELEBRATE THE STALWART EFFORTS OF OUR PIONEER COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE; BECAUSE THEY GAVE US THE FOUNDATION, THAT IS STILL BEING BUILT UPON TO THIS DAY. IT'S UNFORTUNATELY, THE CASE, THAT WE RECOGNIZE THE PIONEER PERIOD, AS THE ORIGIN OF WHAT WE HAVE BECOME IN THE CONTEMPORARY SENSE.
"THE INFORMATION PUBLISHED HERE, GIVES A FEW OF THE ROUGH BEGINNINGS, OF A HOME IN THE BACKWOODS OF CANADA. FROM THE VERY FIRST CLEARING, AND THE RUDE, YET NOT UNCOMFORTABLE LOG-HOUSE. HAVING INSPECTED HIS ESTATE, AND SELECTED THE MOST ADVANTAGEOUS SITE FOR HIS FUTURE RESIDENCE, OUR SETTLER PLIES HIS AXE, AND BY FELLING A FEW OF THE TREES ON THE CHOSEN SPOT, LETS IN THE LONG EXCLUDED DAYLIGHT," REPORTS AN 1850'S "SETTLERS' GUIDEBOOK." TAKE NOTICE, THAT THE WRITER OF THIS SELF-HELP BOOKLET, CONSIDERS FELLING TREES A RATHER EASY ENTERPRISE, WHETHER TO CLEAR A PLACE FOR THE INITIAL CABIN RESIDENCE, OR TO BRING DOWN FOR THE TIMBERS OF THE SOON-TO-BE CONSTRUCTED DWELLING-PLACE. THOUSANDS OF HARDY AND ADVENTUROUS PIONEERS, IN THESE YEARS OF HOMESTEADING THE WILDS OF CANADA, WERE EITHER KILLED OR SERIOUSLY INJURED BY FALLING LIMBS AND TREES, THAT HAVE A HABIT OF NOT LANDING WHERE THE AXEMAN, OR SAW CREW PLANS. CONSIDER THE ICELANDIC SETTLERS TO MUSKOKA, WHO LEFT A COUNTRY HAVING VERY FEW TREES, DUE TO CLIMATE, AND CONDITIONS RELATED TO VOLCANIC INFLUENCES, AND ARRIVED IN THE FALL OF THE YEAR, IN THE VILLAGE OF ROSSEAU, TO FIND THAT TREES WERE EVERYWHERE. WHILE THEY WERE QUICK TO LEARN, BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T HAVE MUCH CHOICE, IT WAS STILL A MOST PRECARIOUS ENTERPRISE, TO BE CUTTING HUGE PINES FOR CLEARINGS, AND THEIR FIRST RESIDENCES, WITHOUT SUSTAINING PERSONAL INJURY FROM MISADVENTURE. AS ANY LOGGER, WITH EXPERIENCE WILL TELL YOU, ROOKIES HAVE TO LEARN FAST THAT, AS MUCH AS YOU TRY TO INFLUENCE THE WAY A TREE FALLS, IT CAN GO THE EXACT OPPOSITE. VETERANS KNOW HOW TO CLEAR AWAY FAST, WHEN THE GIANTS TUMBLE. MANY HOMESTEADERS LEARNED TOO LATE, WHAT DANGERS A CAUGHT-UP TREE, OR KICK-BACK OFF THE STUMP, CAN INFLICT ON THE LOGGER(S) FINDING THEMSELVES, TOO CLOSE TO THE FALLING TIMBER. THE BOOKLET MAKES IT SEEM RUDIMENTARY, AND NO WHERE IN THE TEXT, DOES THIS DANGER OF TREE CUTTING GET A SENTENCE OF EXPLANATION. WELL, THAT WAS INTENTIONAL! THE GOVERNMENT OF THE DAY, DURING THIS HOMESTEAD PERIOD, DIDN'T WANT TO LOSE PIONEERS, JUST BECAUSE THERE WAS THE INHERENT DANGER OF BEING CRUSHED TO DEATH, BY A CUT TREE, THAT DIDN'T FALL QUITE AS IT WAS INTENDED. SOME TREES WERE EVEN BROUGHT DOWN ON TOP OF THE CABINS, ALREADY CONSTRUCTED, BUT THERE ARE NO STATISTICS TO INDICATE JUST HOW MANY DIED THE RESULT OF IMPROPER EXECUTION OF TREE FELLING. ANOTHER EXAMPLE, OF IGNORANCE IS BLISS. SETTLERS WERE SUPPOSED TO LEARN FAST, OR PERISH. MANY DID! IT'S EXPECTED, ONE DAY, AS DEVELOPMENT PUSHES FURTHER INTO THE RURAL AREA, MANY OF THESE SETTLER GRAVES WITH BE UNCOVERED. CEMETERIES IN THE FIRST YEARS OF SETTLEMENT, WEREN'T AVAILABLE, SO THE DECEASED WERE BURIED INSTEAD, ON RESPECTIVE PROPERTIES.
"HIS DWELLING IS TO BE CONSTRUCTED OF MATERIALS THAT ARE CLOSE AT HAND. HE NEED NOT HAUL THE LOGS THAT FORM ITS MASSIVE FRAME-WORK MANY YARDS, FROM WHERE THEY GROW, UNLESS, INDEED, THERE BE A CEDAR, TAMARACK, OR BLACK ASH SWAMP NOT FAR DISTANT, AND HE PREFERS TO BUILD HIS HOUSE OF LIGHTER, STRAIGHTER, AND MORE UNIFORM LOGS, THAN ARE ALREADY ON THE SPOT. A WELL BUILT LOG HOUSE IS BY NO MEANS TO BE DESPISED. THERE IS A FITNESS ABOUT IT THAT CANNOT FAIL TO IMPRESS EVERY OBSERVANT MIND. THE WONDER IS THAT WITH THE ARCHITECTURAL CAPABILITIES POSSESSED BY THE NEW SETTLER, BETTER AND MORE PERMANENT LOG-HOUSES ARE NOT ERECTED." THERE'S NOTHING ARROGANT ABOUT THIS, DO YOU SUPPOSE. THE WRITER AND PUBLISHER, OBVIOUSLY FELT THAT URBAN REFUGEES OF EUROPE, WERE ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS, NOT TO MENTION HOME BUILDERS. THEY WEREN'T THIS CAPABLE, AND MANY OF THE HOMESTEAD CABINS WERE THE MOST BASIC SHELTERS THAT COULD BE MANAGED, WITH THE INEXPERIENCED HELP AVAILABLE. IF YOU HAPPENED TO HAVE RESOURCES, AND SOME CASH TO HAVE A CABIN BUILT FOR YOUR FAMILY, IT COULD BE ARRANGED WITH LOCAL CONTRACTORS, EVEN THEN. THE PROBLEM WITH SOME OF THESE CONTRACTORS, MUCH AS TODAY, CAME WHEN TRANSIENT BUILDERS WOULD AGREE TO CONSTRUCT THESE FIRST CABINS, BUT THEN TAKE THE MONEY, WITH NO WORK RENDERED, LEAVING THE CABINS EITHER UNFINISHED, BEING ROOFLESS, OR IN CASES, NOT HAVING SET DOWN ONE LOG FROM EVEN ONE FELLED PINE. IT WAS A LITTLE PRESUMPTUOUS, THAT A SETTLER, WITH NO PREVIOUS BUILDING EXPERIENCE, OR COPING MECHANISM FOR LONG-TERM RURAL LIVING, WOULD BUILD A BETTER SHELTER, IN THOSE FIRST YEARS, WHEN THE MOST IMPORTANT AND URGENT ISSUE, WAS TRYING TO SURVIVE; WITH THE MOST WEATHER RESISTANT SHANTY THEY COULD BUILD, OR AFFORD SOMEONE ELSE TO CONSTRUCT.
"WE GIVE AN EDITORIAL ILLUSTRATION, SHOWING HOW A LITTLE SKILLFUL EXERCISE OF TASTE, WILL MAKE A LOG BUILDING ATTRACTIVE AND ORNAMENTAL. OTHER STYLES MIGHT BE ADOPTED, EQUALLY, IF NOT EVEN MORE TASTEFUL. SURPRISE HAS BEEN EXPRESSED BY GOOD JUDGES, THAT LOGS HAVE BEEN SO LITTLE, IF EVER, USED FOR GARDENER'S COTTAGES, PORTERS' LODGES, AND FARM HOUSES, ON PRETENTIOUS ESTATES." OBVIOUSLY, THEY WEREN'T WRITING ABOUT SETTLEMENT IN MUSKOKA. THE DISCONNECT BETWEEN THE WRITER, OF THE SETTLERS' GUIDEBOOK, AND THE PIONEERS WAS MANY MILES WIDE. THE PIONEER MUST HAVE THOUGHT HACKING OUT A FARMSTEAD, AND ERECTING A HOUSE, WAS GOING TO BE A RELATIVELY BASIC, EASY, FUNDAMENTAL EXERCISE, AS IT HAD BEEN SUCCESSFULLY PURSUED BY THOUSANDS OF OTHER SETTLERS. I WONDER IF THE WRITER AND PUBLISHER HAD ANY IDEA WHAT A PINE LOG, FOR EXAMPLE, WOULD WEIGH, WHEN CUT, AND PREPARED FOR BARK REMOVAL AND POTENTIAL SQUARING; AND DEMAND OF THE ILL-PREPARED SETTLER, TO HEW INTO USABLE MATERIAL FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE HOMESTEAD DWELLING. IF A TIMBER WAS TO BE SQUARED, AND JOINED DOVE-TAIL, AT THE CORNERS, DID THEY KNOW HOW MANY HOURS IT WOULD TAKE, AND THE SKILL REQUIRED, TO PERFORM THE OPERATION CORRECTLY, SO AS NOT TO WASTE THE EFFORT, THE RESULT OF MAKING MEASUREMENT ERRORS? A LOG CABIN THAT DOESN'T FIT TOGETHER PROPERLY, TO FORM A STRONG BASE FOR A ROOF, WILL EVENTUALLY BECOME A CASUALTY OF STORM AND WINTER SNOW. THE OCCUPANTS COULD BE CRUSHED BELOW, OR AT THE VERY LEAST, LEFT EXPOSED TO THE BITTER WINTER, BECAUSE OF ARCHITECTURAL INCOMPETENCE. THERE WAS A LOT OF THAT GOING AROUND, BUT ONCE AGAIN, THERE ARE NO STATISTICS AVAILABLE, TO KNOW HOW MANY DO-OVERS THERE WERE, IN PIONEER CABIN CONSTRUCTION. YOU WOULD THINK, READING THE SETTLERS'S GUIDE OVERVIEW, THAT EVERY EMIGRANT COULD BE A CABIN BUILDER, A COMPETENT FARMER, AND A PROFITABLE BUSINESSMAN, OR WOMAN, IF THEY INVESTED THEIR TIME AND SKILLS PROPERLY. TRUTH WAS, THE NUMBER WAS PRETTY LOW IN THAT REGARD.
"ONE EVIL USUALLY COMMITTED IN PUTTING UP THE SETTLER'S FIRST HABITATION, IS NEGLECTING THE FOUNDATION. A MODERATELY LEVEL SPOT OF GROUND IS PITCHED UPON, THE BIGGEST LOGS ARE CHOSEN FOR THE BOTTOM COURSE; THEY ARE HASTILY BEDDED SOMEWHAT; AND THE WORK PROCEEDS. MORE PAINS OUGHT TO BE TAKEN WITH THE BOTTOM TIER. IT WOULD BE UNREASONABLE, PERHAPS, TO EXPECT THE LAYING OF A STONE FOUNDATION, THOUGH IT WOULD BE THE WISEST POLICY IMAGINABLE; BUT SURELY, GOOD SOLID BLOCKS, ON END, MIGHT BE LET INTO THE GROUND, IN ORDER TO PREVENT THAT CHRONIC EVIL IN LOG-HOUSES SETTLING. IN TRAVELLING THROUGH THE NEWER SECTIONS OF THIS COUNTRY, ONE OBSERVES A GREAT DIFFERENCE IN THE LOG STRUCTURES. SOME ARE CONTRACTED IN SIZE; COMPOSED OF ROUGH, CROOKED, GNARLED LOGS; THE ENDS WRETCHEDLY HACKED; AND PROJECTING IRREGULARLY; THE CEILINGS LOW; WINDOWS VERY SMALL; ROOFS MADE OF BARK; AND IF YOU ENTER THEM, YOU WILL FIND THEY HAVE EARTH - OR, AS THEY ARE MORE APPROPRIATELY CALLED SOMETIMES -'DIRT FLOORS.' OTHERS ARE SPACIOUS; MADE OF STRAIGHT LOGS, GRADUALLY DECREASING IN SIZE TOWARD THE EAVES; THE ENDS CUT SMOOTHLY, AND THE CORNERS FINISHED TRUE AND SQUARE; THE CEILING HIGH; WINDOWS OF GOOD SIZE; ROOFS NEATLY SHINGLED WITH EITHER SHORT OR LONG SHINGLES; AND INSIDE, YOU WILL FIND A GOOD FLOOR OF SAWED, AND PERHAPS, PLANED LUMBER. IT MAY BE URGED THAT MANY SETTLERS HAVE NEITHER THE MEANS NOR THE SKILL TO MANAGE, ALL THAT IS DESIRABLE; BUT GENERALLY SPEAKING, BY ARRANGING AN EXCHANGE OF WORK WITH SOME SKILLFUL NEIGHBOUR; THE MOST IMPORTANT POINTS MIGHT BE SECURED. ELBOW AND HEAD ROOM, AIRNESS, NEATNESS AND WORKMAN-LIKE APPEARANCE, MIGHT SURELY BE ACHIEVED FROM THE OUTSET. EVEN THOUGH A BARK ROOF AND A DIRT FLOOR MUST BE BORNE WITH AT FIRST, THEY MIGHT SOON BE EXCHANGED FOR SHINGLES AND PLANKS. SAWING AND PLANING ARE NOT NEEDED ABOUT THE EXTERIOR OF A LOG-HOUSE; WITH THE AXE ALONE, A GOOD WOODCUTTER WILL MAKE VERY SMOOTH, NEAT AND HANDSOME WORK."
HERE LIES THE PROBLEM OF THE HOMESTEADERS DEBACLE. HERE IS WHY SO MANY SETTLERS FAILED TO SECURE A WEATHER-TIGHT CABIN, EVEN IN THE FIRST TWO TO THREE YEARS OF FRONTIER LIVING. THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE SKILLS AND WEREN'T ALWAYS ABLE TO SECURE ASSISTANCE OF NEIGHBORS.
THE FARM IN GOOD ORDER
"Gradually but surely the work of improving a new farm, goes forward until it is astonishing what a change is brought about, in a few short years," reminds the Settlers' Guide, expecting the circumstances of those farmsteads to be level, without forests, bogs, rivers, rock strewn fields, and hillsides. "The wilderness is transformed into a fruitful field. One by one the stumps have rotted out, and given the plough free scope to work. Inequalities in the surface of the land have become smoothed down, and almost the only evidence that the country is new, is furnished by the rail fences. The log-buildings have given place to structures of frame or stone. A garden on the farm which we are supposing to have reached a state of completedness. The front fences have ceased to be of rails. A neat, ornamental paling or hedge, skirts the public road, and a tasteful bit of shrubbery environs the house and out-buildings. Altogether there is an air of beauty and attractiveness about the scene, but recently so wild. The above illustration (seen above the blog), will give some idea of the appearance presented by a well laid-out, and neatly kept Canadian farm."
This is just one small example, of what the government was doing, at this time, to con homesteaders to settle the open lands of Canada, to support the eventual coast to coast rail line, and the stretch of the Dominion, from the east to the west across the prairie lands and mountains, from the maritimes components of the fledgling dominion. It was the case, that a few stretched truths weren't going to matter, because the belief was, amongst those in charge of settling the hinterland, the settlers wouldn't be thwarted by a few mistruths, and mildly adverse conditions. The Agricultural Commission Report of the 1880's, confirms this settlement initiative, for Muskoka and Parry Sound, of the late 1860's, as being an experiment with somewhat (although controversial in retrospect) positive results. It found that while disgruntled settlers might chose to leave one settlement area for another in the province or country, chances were, they wouldn't pack up their few possessions, and head back home to Europe; if that's where there point of origin had been. What had been determined, after less than several decades of settlement progress, it took a lot to thwart a homesteader's ambition to own land, and build a family farm. Yet the statistics don't clearly reveal, how many farms were picked up by "pioneer" land speculators, and flipped with other acquired acreage, over time, for personal gain. They were picking up farms where land had been cleared, and in some cases, where even acceptable cabins had been constructed. For whatever reason, in these cases, the settlers gave up, and abandoned the property as a workable farm site. One's loss was another's gain.
When you read through the Settlers' Guidebook, and assume, for just a moment, that you are one of those potential settlers, looking to be sold on moving to the colony for a better life, the whole deal, as a big picture of opportunity, appears quite appetizing. Free Land. A hundred acres! It seems, if you believe the editorial material, as presented, that homesteading was a pretty easy occupation; and there's certainly nothing in the copy thus far, that would inspire great concern, from a city-dweller's perspective, at least. Seeing as many hundreds of thousands, came from urban areas, and had no knowledge of farming, let alone clearing the land, and building shelters for their families, having as a mainstay source, a self-help booklet that doesn't have serious, lengthy warnings published within, in my mind, as an historian, was a terribly dishonest way to secure new citizens. I've asked this often, about how many emigrants died, as a direct or indirect result, of having fully believed the claims about the modest challenges to be faced in the North American wilds. Instead of making sure that only the strongest, fittest, most suitable emigrants arrived in this country, to face the elements, very few advisories, were clear on the subject of the physical damnation, that was soon to come; once they arrived on the, often called, "God-forsaken" property, that was supposed to change lives for the better.
Well, there were advisories. They were under the guise of letters from curious, potential emigrants, and subsequent answers that purposely brushed by the issue, of just how difficult, and unsuccessful homesteading efforts could be, in certain locations of the Province.
"We publish this morning, a letter received by the last mail from England, from a person who is anxious with some of his neighbours, to emigrate to Canada, and who requests us to give him information upon certain points which have evidently been the subject, of some canvassing, between him and his friends. His letter carries with it an important lesson. It shows how little of a really practical character has been yet done, to afford information to the emigrating class of the English people by the Canadian Government, in reference to this country, and how much has evidently been done by agents of the neighboring republic, to misrepresent the position of Canada, and the attractions which it offers to the emigrant from the old world." Here we can see, how the United States is being blamed for mistruths, and critiques of homesteading in Canada. Yet it is clearly known, that government land agents, on Canada's direction, and presumably supported by the British Government, on behalf of the welfare of the Commonwealth, in close relationship to steamship agents, also trying to drum-up business to the continent, were embellishing and misrepresenting homestead realities to achieve an objective. To get thousands upon thousands of emigrants, to settle the lands of the new Dominion, sea to sea! Possibly the American land agents at the time, were doing the same. The emigrant, in the middle of the tug-a-war, believed what he was being told, and what was being published in guidebooks. The settlers were the means to an end? Absolutely. I honestly feel, the Governments of Canada and Britain, owe the families of those early settlers, a belated but sincere apology, for all the inducements to emigrate, without the honest intervention of serious instruction, on what homesteading would generate in terms of physical and emotional hardship, with a devastating weight attached. Not for six months, a year, or a decade. It was, for many of these ill-prepared emigrants, a life-time sentence of deprivation, and enduring failure.
"The class of persons described by our correspondent cannot fail to succeed in this country. People who are 'not afraid to work,' and who have some means, a certain in a very short time to acquire a competency in Canada. Such persons, however, would be foolish to settle in the free grant territory, and undertake the work of clearing a farm from the first. Their true plan would be to purchase a partially cleared farm in one of the older districts. Our correspondent mentions the vicinity of Peterborough. Such farms as we describe could be purchased there, at from twenty, to forty dollars an acre; at the latter price, with considerable improvements in the way of the buildings. And these are within from five to ten miles from a railway station, with good substantial wagon roads, leading in all directions." One has to ask, why these farms were put up for sale, with improvements so substantial. Where did these homesteaders go? The same reality occurred in Muskoka and Parry Sound, when the first round of settlers found out, that their dream farms were not going to prosper in such an area of thin arable soil, millions of trees, rocks, cliffs, hills, and swampland. It heralded the early years of a thriving business, of land speculation in this part of Ontario.
How about this baloney? "Farmers now have no difficulty in selling everything they raise, and they never sell for anything but ash, except of their own option. Such a thing as waiting twelve months for each is never heard of. Storekeepers have to wait that long on farmers for cash for purchases made by the latter; but the farmer never thinks of giving a day's credit, unless indeed, he leaves his money with the storekeeper for safe keeping, which is sometimes done, and which times, moreover, a very foolish thing to do. It is purely optional however, and has nothing to do with the question of credit. All transactions for farm produce in Canada, are cash; and the fact is true of every part of Ontario at any rate. We think it is true of the other Provinces, but upon that point can-not speak so positively."
The statement above is overly confident, and doesn't allow for the prevailing realities, that poor soil, bad weather, late frost, early frost, too much rain, too little, too much heat, or not enough, hail, wind, adversely affect the late summer harvest. In many cases, far more than the article addresses, pioneer farmers were barely able to build enough vegetable provisions to supply the family's needs through the winter season, let alone, selling any for a profit. It would take years of hard work, and the ability to endure many set-backs, in order to be in a position, to sell produce to enhance the farm economy. The paragraph is misleading, and the folks who were reading these embellishments, were in fact, clearly demonstrating, that hardships were minimal, and even if it came down to land speculation, homesteading was a gentle, positive, rewarding experience. If you then consider, that a majority of the emigrants coming to Canada at this time, were the poorest of the poor, wishing to leave the urban slums, to a place where they could own their own farmsteads, what kind of cruel misrepresentation, was being fostered by our partner governments, including the province's role. It was hard to see the positive attributes of this program, as it was operated, with the narrow agenda, of populating a largely vacant Canadian hinterland, coast to coast. The Americans were doing roughly the same. But there were casualties of this manipulation of the truth, and as an historian, I think it was an atrocious wrong, committed upon the most vulnerable of citizens. It is one of the reasons that I have felt compelled to continue researching this period of our history, and honor the memory of the courageous homesteaders, who fought back, and did create family legacies; even thought the odds of them surviving and prospering, were higher than many regional historians have ever considered, or even assessed beyond the black and white of accepted historical record.
From my first forays, into the Muskoka hinterland, back in in the mid 1970's, first as a hobby historian, bottle-digger, backwoods scrounger, I saw the final days of decay, of several dozen log / timber homesteads. None of the ones I visited, in their final state of decline, would have given any appearance of elegance, or possessed any ornamentation beyond the stands of lilacs, that many emigrants brought from England, to remind them of their former homes and lives. I saw for myself, humble, basic homestead cabins, that provided sensible shelter but not much more. There were elaborate houses being built in the urban communities of Muskoka, soon after attaining their "hamlet" status. These were the better-off citizens, and members of the business community. Slowly, the first log cabins, were replaced, with more extravagant farmhouses, and eventually, the cultivation of fields by hand, (and many of them were without oxen and horses), by oxen, horses, was eventually replaced, by new age farm machinery, like steam-powered tractors. I feel fortunate, that I had the time, back then, to see, first hand, some of the humble log cabins, and out-buildings, that had dotted the first homesteads of the district. Some were log cabins re-built after the first attempts either collapsed under the weight of winter snow, or burned down, as many did, thanks to sparking stoves and the open flames of lamps and candles. They weren't built to impress the neighbors. They weren't constructed as luxury residences. There were no luxuries for settlers, living in Muskoka, circa 1859 to 1870. Just seemingly endless days of backbreaking work, sun-up to sunset. Hardships were just part of the true, down to earth, unplugged "Muskoka Lifestyle"; the root tradition of rural living. It is why I have dedicated so much time, to identify the reasons it should be given greater respect, as our social / cultural legacy. It's why I've prepared this series of columns, about our homestead heritage, and will end the series "The Seasons of the Lilac," on Thanksgiving Monday. I think it deserves this tribute series, so I hope you'll join me for a homestead Thanksgiving.
WHAT WERE THE PIONEERS OF MUSKOKA READING AT HEARTHSIDE TO COMBAT THE RIGORS OF CABIN FEVER?
MORE THAN JUST THE BIBLE KEPT UP THE FAITH - BUT CHRISTIAN VALUES, AND GOOD LIVING, WOULD CEASE ALL TEMPTATIONS
WHENEVER I HAVE ATTENDED AN AUCTION, OR ESTATE SALE, WHERE I KNOW PIONEER ERA MATERIALS MIGHT BE FOUND, I KEEP A SHARP EYE FOR THE BOOKS THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN READ BY THE CABIN STOVE….OR AT HEARTHSIDE. AND YES, IN CASE YOU'RE WONDERING, I'VE HAD MANY BOOKS THAT SMELLED LIKE WOODSMOKE, MANY DECADES AFTER INITIALLY BEING EXPOSED. I ONCE OWNED AN EARLY 1600'S GERMAN BIBLE, THAT HAD, AT SOME POINT IN ITS SHELF LIFE, BEEN TOSSED INTO A FIRE…OR AT LEAST, DAMAGED IN A HOUSEHOLD EVENT THAT DESTROYED ITS COVER. A BOOKBINDER I KNEW, IN BRACEBRIDGE, ORIGINALLY FROM IRELAND, TOLD ME THAT A GOAT SKIN COVER HAD BEEN FASHIONED INSTEAD, SOMETIME IN THE 1700'S, TO REPLACE THE DAMAGED ORIGINAL, AND IT HAD BEEN HER JOB FOR A CLIENT, TO SECURE SOME PARTS THAT WERE SEPARATING FROM THE SPINE. THE PERSON NEVER CAME BACK FOR THE BOOK, NOT BEING ABLE TO AFFORD THE HUNDRED DOLLARS IT HAD COST FOR REPAIRS, SO IT WAS OFFERED TO ME, IF I WOULD PAY THE OUTSTANDING BILL. I DID VERY MUCH WANT THAT BOOK, AND I OWNED IT FOR ABOUT FIVE YEARS BEFORE SELLING IT TO A GERMAN BIBLE COLLECTOR FOR A CONSIDERABLE PROFIT. THERE WAS SOMETHING ABOUT THAT BOOK, I CAN'T EXPLAIN, EXCEPT TO SAY I ENJOYED ITS HISTORY…..THINKING ABOUT ALL THE CHRONICLE OF CIVILIZATION THAT HAD OCCURRED AFTER ITS PRINTING….SUCH AS IN CANADA, THE COMING AND LEAVING OF THE JESUITS, UNDER FIRE, AT STE, MARIE AMONGST THE HURONS, IN MIDLAND, LATE IN THE 1600'S. IMAGINE THAT. THIS BOOK WAS PRINTED BEFORE THE ATTACK ON HURONIA BY THE IROQUOIS.
I HAVE A RAVENOUS APPETITE FOR THE BOOKS OWNED AND PRESUMABLY READ BY OUR REGIONAL PIONEERS. OUR FIRST FARMERS. IT'S IMPORTANT TO ME AS AN HISTORIAN, BECAUSE IT HELPS ME UNDERSTAND THEIR VALUES AND MORAL STANDARDS, IN THESE VICTORIAN TIMES. MANY HOMESTEADS WERE VOID OF BOOKS, EVEN BIBLES. OTHER FARMSTEADS HAD CONSIDERABLE LITERATURE. ONE IN PARTICULAR, THE EWING FARM, BETWEEN BRACEBRIDGE AND MILFORD BAY, HAD AN OUTSTANDING LIBRARY OF JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING, AND THE ONLY THING THAT STOPPED ME BUYING THE WHOLE LOT, WAS THAT I WAS DAMN-NEAR BROKE AT THE TIME. I DID MANAGE TO GET AN 1850'S SECOND EDITION OF "THE FARMER'S EVERY DAY BOOK," WHICH CONTAINED A WIDE RANGING TEXT, ON EVERYTHING FROM THE DISEASES OF ANIMALS, TO THE SOCIAL AND MORAL EVILS OF DEMON RUM. IT HANDLED MATTERS OF ANIMAL HUSBANDRY, INTIMATE RELATIONS BETWEEN CONSENTING ADULTS, AND HOME COOKING; RELIGIOUS OBEDIENCE, TO HOW TO GET A STAIN OUT OF A SATIN DRESS, OR LACE TRIM. BUT IT WAS THE KIND OF BOOK THAT YOU COULD WIND UP CONSULTING EVERY DAY, TO HELP DEAL WITH A FARMSTEAD CONUNDRUM, OF WHICH I'M SURE THERE WERE MANY. AND IF YOU FELT YOUR FAITH SLIPPING, IT WAS ALSO A HANDY CHRISTIAN GUIDEBOOK BACK TO AN APPRECIATION OF DIVINE INSPIRATION.
I WAS LUCKY TODAY TO UNCOVER, FROM MY ARCHIVES, AN 1897 COPY OF ANOTHER OF THESE (LATE) VICTORIAN ERA SELF-HELP, MORAL GUIDANCE TEXT BOOKS, ENTITLED "STEPPING STONES TO HAPPINESS," ALSO COVERING A WIDE ARRAY OF HOME SITUATIONS, INCLUDING THE DILEMMA OF HAVING THE MISFORTUNE OF A WIFE AND MOTHER, WHO WAS VOID OF COOKERY SKILLS. THUS, THERE IS SOME SELF HELP CONTAINED WITHIN. THERE IS THE CHRISTIAN OVERTONE, AND MORAL GUIDANCE INCLUDED, ALONGSIDE TIPS FOR ENHANCING HOME ECONOMY, COOKING WITH LIMITED RESOURCES, AND STAVING OFF ILLNESSES SUCH AS SCARLET FEVER. BUT IT WAS ALSO A SOURCE OF INSPIRATION, TO MANY OF ITS HOMESTEAD READERS, WHO ADMITTEDLY, STARING OUT THE CABIN WINDOW, ONTO THE DARKER DAYS OF AUTUMN, WOULD GET A LITTLE ANXIOUS ABOUT THE IMMINENT APPROACH OF WINTER. THESE WERE CORNY BOOKS FOR THE MOST PART, YET THEY PLAYED A ROLE IN KEEPING THE HOMEMAKERS UP TO SPEED, SO TO SPEAK, ON THE LATEST ADVISORIES FOR HAVING A HAPPY AND HEALTHY FAMILY UNDER THAT FARMSTEAD ROOF.
I THOUGHT YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED TO READ SOME OF THE EDITORIAL MATERIAL, OFFERED FOR THE MUSKOKA SETTLER, AT AROUND THE TIME, 1897 OR SLIGHTLY LATER. THE BOOKS WERE WRITTEN AND PUBLISHED FOR PROFIT, SO A LOT OF FAMILIES WEREN'T ABLE TO JUSTIFY ITS PURCHASE. THIS TEXT DID COME FROM A PIONEER HOMESTEAD IN CENTRAL MUSKOKA, AND IN FACT, IT IS NOW MY SECOND COPY. I USE THESE BOOKS A LOT, IN RESEARCH, BECAUSE THEY WERE VERY INFLUENTIAL WHEN IT CAME TO HOUSE-KEEPING….AND BOTH MY BOOKS HAVE BEEN WELL USED AND HOPEFULLY ENJOYED. THE IDEA WAS TO SPREAD CHRISTIAN VALUES INTO THE PIONEER CABINS OF THE HINTERLAND ALL OVER NORTH AMERICA. THESE COPIES ARE FROM OUR REGION OF ONTARIO, AND WERE ACTUALLY KEPT VERY WELL, CONSIDERING THE TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATIONS AND DAMPNESS, THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN EXPOSED, OVER THE CENTURIES. FORMERLY, MY "FARMER'S EVERY DAY BOOK," CRUMBLED IN MY HANDS, BECAUSE IT WAS KEPT IN MUCH POORER CONDITIONS, THAN THESE NOW. I HATED TO LOSE THAT BOOK WHEN IT LITERALLY BECAME DUST IN THE WIND.
HERE ARE SOME EDITORIAL INSIGHTS ABOUT THE AUTUMN SEASON, HEADED SIMPLY, "LIGHT-HEARTED OCTOBER." "AND WHILE THE FARM FAMILY READS ON, THEY MIGHT ALSO FEEL THAT THEY ARE BREATHING-IN AN EXCITING NEW LIFE; ONE WITH ASSURANCES, THAT ALL IS RIGHT IN THE HOME AND GARDEN; ENJOYING HEARTFULLY, THE INVIGORATION OF EARLY AUTUMN WITH A CLEAR CONSCIENCE. "IT SEEMS STRANGE THAT WE ASSOCIATE WITH THIS SEASON THE IDEA OF CHEERFULNESS AND MIRTH AND LIGHT-HEARTED LABOR."
"ONE MIGHT SUPPOSE THAT EXACTLY THE OPPOSITE EFFECT WOULD BE PRODUCED UPON US BY ALL THE THREATENING TOKENS. THE DREARY TIME OF SHORT DARK DAYS, GRAY WEATHER, AND STORMS APPROACHING; THE IMPRISONMENT OF THE SNOW, THE BLEAK WINTER COLD. THE FLOWERS ARE GONE, THE LEAVES ARE GOING; FROST IS ALREADY UPON US; THE SUMMER'S SAUNTERING IS OVER, THE MOON-LIT STROLL, THE SUNSET SAIL; THE WINDS ARE KEEN AND NIPPING, THE GROUND IS DAMP AND SODDEN, AND ONE MIGHT SUPPOSE IT DEBATABLE WHETHER IT WERE BEST TO KEEP ALIVE OR NOT, INSTEAD OF REJOICING OURSELVES OVER THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF LIFE, UNDER SUCH CONDITIONS; IT WERE A BOON WORTH HAVING.
"AND YET SUCH IS THE PERVERSITY OF HUMAN NATURE, THAT NOT WHEN SPRING RUSTLES ALL HER PROMISE OF PERFUME AND BLOSSOM, OF WARMTH AND EASE AND BEAUTY, WHEN THE SAP MOUNTS AND THE BLOOD BUBBLES AND THE YEAR OPENS WITH RENEWAL OF YOUTH'S FRESHNESS, ARE WE HALF SO CHEERFUL AS WHEN THIS RED AUTUMN HANGS OUT HIS BANNER. WE TAKE NO HEED THEN OF THE FUTURE, AND WE FORGET THAT ALL THE SPLENDOR OF HIS ARRAY CHANGES PRESENTLY, LIKE FAIRY MONEY, TO ASHES; GHOSTS WHOSE APPARITION DOES NOT GIVE US APPREHENSION. THE DAZZLING COLOR IS ENOUGH FOR US NOW; AND WITH THE GOLDEN SUNSHINE OF THE ELMS AND BEECHES, THE ROYAL PURPLE OF THE ASH, THE DULL CRIMSON AND BROWN OF THE OAK, THE SUPERB AND SCARLET FLAMING OF MAPLE AND TUPELO AND SUMAC, THE WHOLE ATMOSPHERE IS FULL OF SPLENDOR, AND WE CATCH THE SPIRIT OF JUBILEE - PERHAPS BATTALIONS AND TRIUMPHANT JUBILEE - AW WE MARCH OUT TO CONQUER THE COMING HOSTS OF WINTER." THIS, BY THE WAY, WAS WRITTEN BY HARRIET PRESCOTT SPOFFORD, AND PUBLISHED BY THE CHRISTIAN HERALD.
HARRIET SPOFFORD WRITES OF "AUTUMN CHEER," AS FOLLOWS: "HOW MUCH OF THIS CHEERFULNESS IS DUE TO THE BRACING INFLUENCES OF THE AIR, WHICH IS APT TO WORK LIKE IRON IN THE VEINS, AND HOW MUCH TO THE EFFECT OF LIGHT AND COLOR UPON THE NERVES, IT IS NOT QUITE EASY TO DETERMINE. BY THE BRACING ATMOSPHERE OF THE SEA-SIDE OR OF THE MOUNTAINS, HOWEVER, WE ARE NOT ALWAYS MADE PERFECTLY CHEERFUL, BUT BY THAT OF THE SUNNY FALL DAYS, OTHER THINGS BEING EQUAL, THE HAPPY CHANGE SELDOM FAILS TO BE WROUGHT, AND WE MAY PROUDLY IMAGINE IN OURSELVES, AN UNGUESSED AND UNCONSCIOUS SUSCEPTIBILITY TO BEAUTY THAT IS ABLE TO WORK MIRACLES AND TURN EVEN DEAD LEAVES INTO THE BRILLIANT JEWELS OF THE TREES OF THE ARABIAN'S GARDEN.
"THERE IS SUCH AN ILLUMINATION PRESENT EVERYWHERE, SUCH AN AIRY SPLENDOR LIFTING THE WOODS THEMSELVES, SUCH A FIELD OF THE CLOTH OF GOLD SET AMONG ALL DEAD FERNS AND BRAKES AND STUBBLE; THERE IS SUCH A LOFTY SOARING OF THE LIGHTED SKY ABOVE US AND AROUND, THAT THE WILL OF BEAUTY MUST BE WROUGH UNAWARE UPON THE VERIEST DOLT AND CLOWN AMONGST US. FAR OFF, TOO, ON THE HORIZON SUCFH HAZES BROOD, WITH THEIR SOFT DEEP VIOLET TINTS, NOW AND THEN LETTING A SHEET OF SUNLIGHT THROUGH TO SIFT UPON THE SCENE, LEADING INTO THE UNKNOWN, AND BORROWING FROM THE INFINITE, AND GIVING A CERTAIN SATISFACTION IN THE VIEW; FOR WHEREVER ANY SUGGESTION OF THE INFINITE IS GIVEN, COMFORT IS TO BE FOUND BY THOSE MORTALS TO WHOM THE IDEA OF MORTALITY IS HEAVY WITH GLOOM.
"THUS IT IS NOT IMPOSSIBLE THAT OUT OF THE MERE AFFAIRS OF THE FANCY, THE HUES OF LEAF AND SKY AND LANDSCAPE, A POSITIVE HAPPINESS IS WROUGHT QUITE EQUAL TO THE HAPPINESS USUALLY GIVEN BY WHAT ARE RECKONED MORE SUBSTANTIAL THINGS. IT IS WELL KNOWN THAT AMONG THE MOST CHEERFUL SENSATIONS PRODUCED BY EXTERNALS ARE THOSE PRODUCED BY VARIOUS DEGREES OF RED, ESPECIALLY THE SHADES OF CHERRY, CARNATION AND DEEP CRIMSON. THE COQUETTE UNDERSTANDS THIS AS SHE KNOTS A RED RIBBON IN HER HAIR, AND THE BEAUTY, TOO, WHOSE DEMASK BLUSH IS HER CHIEF ORNAMENT; THE CRIMSON CARPETED ROOM IS THE ONE WHICH INSTANTLY REMINDS US OF WARMTH AND PLEASURE, AND IN WHICH ANY GREAT FALL OF SPIRITS FROM A HIGH TEMPERATURE SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE; IT IS THE GRAY SEA PICTURE INTO WHICH TURNER THRUSTS THE VERMILLION-COLORED BUOY, AND TRANSFORMS IT; IT IS THE RUSSET-COLORED AUTUMN THAT NATURE ENLIVENS WITH THE SCARLET LEAF.
"AND YET THESE REDS ARE THE COLOR OF BLOOG, THE SIGNAL OF BATTLE, THE EXPONENT OF SLAUGHTER AND OF FIRE; AND WHY A COLOR THAT IS THE VERY FLAG OF WAR, AND THE REPRESENTATION OF CRUEL WOUNDS OF DEATH, SHOULD GIVE US PLEASANT AND COMFORTABLE SENSATIONS, IS ONLY EXPLICABLE BY THE SUPPOSITION THAT IN ITSELF THE ROSY RAY ACTS AS A STIMULANT UPON THE NERVES, EXCITING THESE COMFORTABLE SENSATIONS. THERE IS, INDEED, SOMETHING RATHER FLATTERING TO OUR VANITY IN THE BELIEF THAT WE ARE THUS STRONGLY AFFECTED BY SUCH AESTHETIC FORCES; BUT IF IT IS SUPPOSABLE THAT THE MOST OF US HAVE SOULS, THE IDEA IS NEITHER VERY EXTRAORDINARY NOR FANTASTIC."
THE MOST ILLUMINATING PARAGRAPH FOR THIS WRITER, AUTUMN ENTHUSIAST, READS AS FOLLOWS: "BUT QUITE APART FROM THIS MERELY INTELLECTUAL OR NERVOUS ACTION UPON OUR BATTERIES IN THIS MATTER OF THE AUTUMN CHEER, IS THE MUCH MORE EARTHLY AND SOLID CONTENT OCCASIONED BY THE COMPLETION OF THE HARVEST AND HARVESTING, THE KNOWLEDGE THAT THE ROUND WORLD OVER THE LABORER IS REAPING HIS REWARD, THAT THE EARTH HAS AGAIN PAID HER DIVIDEND TO THE RACE, THAT NATURE HAS DONE HER DUTY AND KEPT HER PROMISE, THAT THE GREAT GUARDIAN STILL SEES THAT NEITHER SEED-TIME NOR HARVEST FAILS IN ITS SEASON. INDEED, IF THE BURSTING OF THE LEAF AND FLOWER MAKES ONE FEEL THAT GOD IS ALIVE, IN HIS WORLD, THEN THE RIPENING OF THE BROAD FIELDS FROM EAST TO WEST OF THE PLANET, FILLING OF THE VAST GRANARIES, THE GIFT OF THE YEAR'S FOOD TO MAN AND BEAST, GIVE ONE EVEN FIRMER ASSURANCE THAT THE GRET PULSE IS BEATING THROUGH THE DAYS AND NIGHTS, AND THAT THE ETERNAL LIFE AND THE ETERNAL LOVE GO HAND IN HAND. WHAT WONDER, THEN, THAT, ALTHOUGH WE DO NOT PAUSE TO CONSIDER IT, THE CONSCIOUSNESS THAT WE ARE SO SURROUNDED BY THE DIVINE CARE THAT NO MALICE OF THE FIERCE ELEMENTS CAN REACH US SHOULD MAKE US LIGHT-HEARTED ENOUGH TO GO FORWARD GAYLY, TO MEET THE LEY DARTS THAT WINTER SLINGS, SECURE IN OUR POWER OF PROTECTION, AND DELIGHTING TO TURN OLD JANUARIES FROM AN ENEMY TO A FRIEND."
"THUS WE SEE THAT, AFTER ALL, THERE IS NOTHING SO SINGULAR IN THIS AUTUMN CHEERFULNESS, AND THAT, INDEED, A CONTRARY SPIRIT WOULD BE A SINGULAR THING, WHILE FEW FOLLIES COULD BE GREATER, HAVING THIS CHARMING PRESENT, THAN TO IGNORE IT THROUGH FEAR OF TOMORROW, AND THAT IT IS WISDOM AS WELL AS PLEASURE TO ENJOY THIS BRIGHT DAY WHILE IT LASTS."
I DON'T KNOW IF THE FARMSTEAD READER, MIGHT WELL HAVE CLOSED UP THE BOOK, SET IT ON HIS OR HER OWN LAP, AND UTTERED, "NONSENSE, SIMPLY NONSENSE," OR ON THE OTHER HAND, WHISPERED TO A LOVED-ONE, "OUR FAILED HARVEST WAS GOD'S WILL." THE OPTIMISM FROM THESE PASSAGES, OOZES FROM THE PAGES RATHER GENEROUSLY, BUT I'M NOT AT ALL SURE HOW IT WAS ALL JUSTIFIED AND PLACED IN THE REALM OF HEAVEN AND EARTH, WHEN GOING INTO THE WINTER SEASON, A LESSER HARVEST AND SMALL INCOME MEANT, A NEAR STARVATION DIET UNTIL THE VERY NEXT HARVEST. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW, IF EVER ONCE, THIS CHEERFUL, INSPIRING BOOK, WAS SLAMMED DOWN ON A TABLE, AND LEFT UNREAD FOR YEARS AFTER, BECAUSE OF ITS SUGGESTION THAT THERE ARE NO FAILED HARVESTS IN THE GOOD OLD WORLD. IT IS A WHIMSICAL BOOK, AT THE SAME TIME AS BEING PRACTICAL IN MANY WAYS, BUT ALWAYS A REMINDER OF CHRISTIAN VALUES AND A DIVINE SPARK ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE, OF HAVING UNFETTERED FAITH IN GOD. BOOKS LIKE THESE DID HAVE A PLACE IN THE FARMSTEADS OF MUSKOKA AS MUCH AS IN THE PARLORS AND KITCHENS OF FARMS AND HOMES IN NORTH DAKOTA, OR MINNESOTA, KENTUCKY OR ALBERTA. IT WAS THE SENSIBILITY OF THE PUBLISHERS AND THE AUTHOR, TO MAKE A BOOK APPEAL TO THE SENSES….AND ONE THAT COULD INFLUENCE A FAILING FARMER TO FEEL PROSPEROUS FOR A TIME…..DESPITE A POOR HARVEST. THERE WAS GOODNESS WITHIN THE MOST ADVERSE CIRCUMSTANCES, AND EVEN WINTER SHOULD HAVE BEEN CHERISHED FOR ITS POSITIVE INFLUENCES TOWARD HOME ECONOMICS AND FAMILY CLOSENESS. THE FACT THAT CABIN FEVER AND ENDLESS SNOW NEARLY DROVE THEM NUTS, IN THOSE COUNTRYSIDE SHELTERS, DOESN'T ENTER THE EQUATION IN THIS BOOK, AND OTHERS WRITTEN WITH THE SAME DETERMINATION, TO DRAW CHEERFULNESS FROM OTHERWISE BLEAK SITUATIONS.
AS FAR AS ITS REPRESENTATION OF THE AUTUMN SEASON, AND THE COLORS OF NATURE, I WISH I COULD WRITE AS WELL AS HARRIET SPOFFORD.
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