W. D. Flatt

“ A young man with an intense love for nature, who had heard and answered the call of the wilderness, who knew the silent places, the forest giants, who associated with the birds and the rippling streams and revelled in it all, could not be content even in the little town which York was in those days. If Robert had lived to-day he would not have been content to spend his life in the heart of a city. ”

“ Many and many a young man was given good advice when making plans for his future.
Thus was happiness provided for and love ruled alone. For twenty-seven years the two journeyed along life’s pathway happily and truly, and then, while Robert was yet a stalwart man and apparently in good health and strength, he was one day suddenly taken ill and received his call up the long, long trail which has no ending here on earth. It was a blow to him when he realized that the end had come, particularly when it came so suddenly and unexpectedly. It was hard for him to leave his helpmate in life. ”

“ As we have learned, Robert was a lad whose body and mind and soul were clean. He had read Donald’s mind and soul through his eyes and knew at once that he could not have much in common with the older man, so long at least as the Factor maintained that domineering spirit which usually belongs to a lower class nature. Robert was only a youth, it is true, but instinct and his training had taught him the principles of right and wrong, the equality and brotherhood of man, and the supremacy of God. ”

“ Then, with a farewell wave of the hand, with faces beaming with love and confidence in the future, they parted to be swallowed up by the vast and unknown regions of the Canadian West. From henceforth the wilderness world was to be their home.
Imagine, you lads of sixteen and seventeen, the feelings of this young man, starting out on a new adventure into unknown country. You lads who are homesick when you spend a week away from home on the farm will appreciate the indomitable spirit that Robert must have possessed at this point in the journey. ”

“ While the lumber-jacks were in some respects hard men and had seen accidents and somewhat similar things before, their regard for the boy who had proved himself a real man made tears flow from their eyes, which froze into icicles as they trickled down their bearded faces. There before them, written on the snow around their feet, was the sad tale of how the heroic lad had met his end in the forest, doing his duty. ”

“ Evidently peace and love ruled supreme, and this was the kind of a home, where the parents of the children lived happily, where a man finds rest and where he learns to love and cherish the one who shares his daily duties. To Robert it seemed that Mary was the jewel of the home. He saw that she relieved her mother so far as she could with the household duties, and he noted also that she had been well trained to look after these as they should be done. With the realization of all these things the joy in his heart increased. ”

“ MacTavish, the Factor, looked the lads over carefully, wondering what kind of material the Company’s officer had chosen for him. He was a man not given to smiles, and through long association with the Indians and the half-civilized people [41] of the wilds he had come to cultivate a stern and hard mien which did not by any means represent his true feelings. However, when the stalwart lads from the Orkneys, with Robert in the lead, marched past, each with his strong box containing all his earthly goods on his shoulder, a smile was seen to break through the sternness of his face. ”

“ With all the struggle and striving for success do not forget that life’s choicest gift is Love. Every chivalrous act results from love. Faith, Hope and Charity are all the outgrowth of love. Nature as we see it around us in the fields and forests is a picture of love, and is a sort of mirror reflecting God’s thoughts.
Robert and Mary, the hero and heroine of the preceding story, went their way and left an impress of their lives on their country and on the hearts of the people of their time by playing fairly and by working with God’s blessing. ”

“ May we never forget the heroic daring, the finer qualities of self-denial, of loyalty to duty, stronger than the love of life, of the temper which dreads dishonor more than it fears death and the patriotism which makes love of home and country a passion. ”

“ It is the wise young man or woman who can see an opportunity and grab it from where he stands, and in a good many cases these [153] opportunities consist simply in doing honestly, sincerely and with all the heart that can be put into it the things which lie right at hand. It may be pitching hay on the farm, chucking coal into the fire-box of a locomotive or delivering parcels from a grocery store. If these things are done with the right spirit and done as well as one knows how to do them, bigger opportunities are as certain to crop up all in good time as the sun is to rise to-morrow morning. ”

“ The aim has been to follow a young man’s life from his home in the Orkney Islands, one hundred years ago, through his experiences in what was then an untravelled country in the Canadian West, and to show how, in his humble, commonplace way, he took hold of the opportunities which presented themselves, small though they might seem to us to be, and built up a character and a place for himself in the community which stood the test of time. ”

“ They saw through his stories that in the new life there was to be conflict among ever-changing conditions and that with this adventure came victory—victory not only in things which pertained to the Company’s welfare, but also which extended to the making of their own characters. The lads longed to try their fortune where nature was supreme, where the feet of white men had seldom if ever trod, where the conflict of nature was unceasing. ”

“ Don’t forget that God will be with you just as well across the sea as He would here. It doesn’t matter where you are, in the wilderness or by the lakes, He will stay with you night and day just the same, and if you love and serve Him truly there will not be any doubt about the future for all of us.” After a moment, when she was again able to control herself, she went on: “If it should happen that I do not see you again at our home here, my lads, I will be waiting for you in a better place up yonder.”
The happenings on the dock had had an interested watcher. ”

“ This country of ours, Canada, is to-day, in resources, an undeveloped opportunity, the greatest under God’s heaven. With its wealth of land, forest and mine, with its unknown and undreamed-of resources in the sections man has not yet trod, it presents a wealth of opportunity such as our fathers never dreamed of. ”

“ They realized that almost any lad could fall in and drift with the crowd, but that it required backbone and unusual courage to stand alone for what was right when they were surrounded by men such as made up the ship’s crew.
For many years Sandy had been associated with men of a lower type, and he consequently understood that they as well as himself respected the young man who, possessing backbone and nerve, fought at all times for the principles he believed to be right. ”

“ Donald saw immediately that he had been treating Robert in the wrong way. He realized now that he was dealing really with a man, and a man in whom there was wisdom and courage as well as physical strength. Maturity of mind was also apparent. It was evident that Robert’s words were not spoken in any ordinary way. There was a depth and earnestness to them that the Factor in his more confined nature could not understand. He realized that new territory must be opened up if the yearly output of furs from the Fort Garry district was to be increased, and the suggestion appealed immediately. ”

“ While it is necessary that we work hard, and keep everlastingly at it; while it is essential that we be thrifty and look after what we earn carefully to produce the right kind of character, it is a fact to which those who have grown out of youth will testify if they are serious, that the dollars a man has do not leave any lasting record for him. ”

“ This time he knew that the situation would be more trying, and with a view to getting what help he could he threw the harness from the dogs, knowing that they would defend themselves bravely. He looked to the prisoner to see what aid could be expected from him, but again the character of the man showed itself in his face, since abject fear was stamped thereon. He was desperately afraid. Robert knew, however, that if it came to the worst this human brute would be of some service, and in his sense of justice he knew that the man should be given a chance at least to fight for his life. ”

“ At first he thought he would have no difficulty with these men, presuming that he could handle them as easily as he had done his own Indians in the Fort Garry district. In a moment or two, however, he saw that these natives had no respect for the white man. He knew from their faces and from the glare of their eyes that they meant anything but friendliness [74] toward him. It was useless to try to escape. He laid down his pack and stood erect, facing the leader with a fearless and undismayed look, and as the painted red man approached Robert stepped forward with outstretched hand and smiled. ”

“ That afternoon a log cabin was seen. Robert realized how a lone pioneer had blazed his way into the forest solitude, how he had hewn out a home for himself and his loved ones in the heart of the forest, and at the moment there returned to him his dream by the camp-fire in the north-western district, and he wondered and renewed his determination to go into the forest shortly and to build such a cabin for his future home. ”

“ Keep in mind the fact that the real things of life are the ones to be worked for, and by attempting to work up to an ideal much better progress will be made. If God gives you powers to construct, to create, to organize and to develop, be mightily thankful and do your utmost to develop these powers. Any man can be mightily useful in the world if he will seriously take hold of the talents—be they one or twenty—God gives him and uses them as best he knows how. ”

“ At first the additional weight seemed unbearable, but at Pete’s suggestion the lad adopted the Indian lope, which the guide had taught him during the long journey. This made the burden easier, since at each step it eased it up from the shoulder so that it did not seem like dead weight, and was also easier on Pete. The burden was heavy, but nothing within reason was too great for Robert when he had made up his mind. His will-power and unusual strength made it possible to accomplish tasks that would look impossible to a faint-hearted youth. ”

“ It will be necessary to use courage, grit and determination in the battle of life. These are the things which will carry you through. But you will find that life and good fellowship when properly used will radiate themselves widely and make their influence largely felt. Let your words always be truthful. This is a bigger factor in success than most young people imagine, and if thankfulness for kindnesses received is apparent this will smooth the way a good deal. ”

“ To the young man, who had been living largely on dried meat and flap-jacks, a boiled dinner of cabbage, potatoes and meat, tastefully seasoned, cooked to a finish, with an inviting-looking pudding and a well-filled plate of cookies, all served on a spotless tablecloth, was surely a treat. ”

“ While his mind wandered off and across the sea his thoughts turned, as a real man’s ideas will, to other things, and at times he dreamed dreams of a real home such as he might expect to have some time in the future where he would have a helpmeet who would be sympathetic and whose burdens he might have a chance of sharing. ”