PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE OF THE EARLY EUROPEAN IMMIGRANT.
THE STORY OF A YOUNG POLISH SCHOOL TEACHER.
The following story of the progress of a bright Pole from a peasant
boy to full Canadian citizenship has been widely circulated and will be
read with interest by all who are interested in our European population.
It is a long way from a little Austrian village snugly resting on a
grassy slope of the Carpathian Mountains, to the fertile prairie lands of
Canada. It is a great change from a neatly painted little cottage in Ga-
licia to a sod shack in Saskatchewan. It is a still longer step from a seat
in a little Austrian school house to a place in the graduating class of the
University of Saskatchewan.
About fifteen years ago John Niemczyk, a Pole, emigrated to Canada
from Austria and settled in northeastern Saskatchewan, where he took
up a homestead. A low, sod-roofed mud "shack" was built, and the new-
comer with his wife and family of seven children settled down to lay the
foundation of a new Canadian home. The struggle was hard for a few
years. No member of the family knew a word of English, but the eldest
son, Louis, then a robust lad of eight or nine, soon manifested a disposi
tion to learn the new language. There was no school in the district, and
the boy made little progress. After about five years other settlers came,
and a school was opened. Louis was then about fourteen years of age.
The teacher was a young Canadian, who entered heart and soul into the
work of teaching English to half a hundred foreign children, the majority
of whom knew absolutely nothing of the language.
The young Polish lad attended regularly and made rapid progress in
his studies. After two years he had advanced sufficiently to enter a high
school. During the next summer, owing to the scarcity of qualified teach-
ers, he was granted a permit to teach school in a non-English district.
This he did with marked success, and in the fall he returned to high
school. The following summer he was successful in passing part of the
examinations for a third class teacher's diploma, and the next year he
completed the work for this certificate. Several months were then spent
in attendance at the normal school. After another year's successful ex-
perience, he pursued studies leading to university entrance, and obtained
his junior matriculation with a most creditable showing. Another year
was spent in teaching in a Ruthenian settlement, after which he entered
the provincial university, where he began work on a course leading to
degrees in Arts and Agriculture.
After graduating from the public school, he decided that in order to
obtain a high school education, and at the same time assist his parents in
erecting a new home he must practise rigid economy. With this end in
view he purchased a small lot on the outskirts of the town of Yorkton,
and here built a "shack". In this humble dwelling he lived simply during
his life at high school, doing his own housework and even baking his own
bread. But this was not all. For two winters he kept with him a younger
brother and sister, whom he looked after in order that they, too, might
obtain the educational advantages afforded by the public schools of the
town. This story of thrift, perseverance. and conquest may best be told
in Louis' own words:
"I was born on the 17th of July, 1893, in a densely populated section
of Austria called Trzynietz. This district is situated on the banks of the
Olsa River, near the Beskiden Mountains, which separates the northern
boundary of Hungary from East Silesia.
"In this busy centre I spent my first nine years, enjoying the beautiful
mountainous scenery, the blossoming fruit trees, the singing of birds, and
the busy hum of bees. Not far to the north, high draught chimneys
towered over large structures, where the smelting of iron ore, the making
of railway rails, and the production of enamel-ware provided occupation
for the people. The heaving, hissing, puffing, and groaning of the power-
ful machines by day could be heard for miles around, while the nights
were constantly illuminated by the reflection from the huge
furnaces.
"My public school education began when I was not quite six years
old. The first year of my school life was very pleasant and interesting,
because I was learning something about the elementary subjects in my
maternal language, which was Polish. I had mastered probably the most
difficult stage of my work, when my father became greatly interested in
the widespread emigration to Canada. It was true that he was facing a
serious problem. However, the letters from Canada, which he received
from his countrymen, told him of a land where justice and liberty abound-
ed. He worked in a factory and wished to escape the heel of oppression.
He desired to break away from the landlordism, militarism, and high
taxation. He longed to bring his family of seven to a land of freedom
and greater opportunities. His desire became so strong that he finally
decided to leave for the New World.
Bibliography follows:
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