NARRATIVES OF SASKATOON

1882-1912

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, Pioneer,Saskatchewan history, Temperance Colony, Temperance Colonization Society, Pioneers,John N. Lake, John Lake, Saskatoon history, Saskatoon Gen Web, Genealogy, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, Pioneer,Saskatchewan history, Temperance Colony, Temperance Colonization Society, Pioneers/font>

preacher. Hymns sung were "All Rail The Power Of Jesus Name" and "Shall We Gather At The River." The lesson was 11th chapter of John's Gospel,-the text being 25th and 26th verses. The theme was the possibil- ity of a new life where only death seemed to reign and incidentally the possibility of a glorious resurrection from this country, especiaily if our faith and hope were in God. The following day, Blake and Grant left for 10th base in order to locate Clark's Crossing exactly. Mr. Hill and I went to Moosewoods and on our way back camped on the hill over the River, thinking that it was a fine spot for a town. The mosquitos drove us out of our tent at 4 a.m. and we built a fire, got our breakfast, and reached the Crossing at 10 a.m., August 2nd. Blake and Grant had located the Crossing at almost the extreme nor- thern boundary of the Colony. So on August 3rd 1 started up the River again with a Mr. Sayer who was on his way West and could talk Sioux. Camped on the reserve and I found that Whitecap said there was no point on the river between Moosewoods and the Crossing where both banks of the river were as low as in this region, so we came hack and examined the lo cality and went to the Crossing and discussed the matter with Grant, Hill and Blake, and we decided to recommend this locality if we did not see a reason to change before we left. Aug. 6th.~Sunday. preached again. Acts 3-19. Congregation 10 per- sons (1). Monday.-Grant and I started for Prince Albert, looking for timber on the way and Blake, Hill, Tait, Goodwin, Latham, and the Hamiltons went south and east to survey and explore still further. We all met again on the 17th., Mr. Hill was very sick and on the 19th we sent him to Prince Albert on his way home by boat to Winnipeg. Aug. l8th.-All camped at or near Mr. Kusch's lot and examined the shore west of that and further south. Then we decided on section 27, and further south, and fixed our boundaries-we thought of "Minnetonka" for a name at first, but we found some "Saskatoon" berries and that settled the name. The following Sunday I preached the first sermon in this locality to 10 persons, four of whom came 3 miles on foot. Text: Hebrews 11th chap~ ter, 12 and 13 verse. After spending some days about here we all went back to the Crossing, settled up our matters. Grant and Tait came home by Moose Jaw, and four of us started across country, struck the Humboldt trail and Touch- wood Hills to Qu'Appelle in 7 days, resting on Sunday. We would start at 4.30 drive till 6.30, breakfast, and off again at 8. travel till 12, dine till 2, start again, supper at 4.30, off again at 6, camp at 7.30. Horses we slow and trail not very good,-a tiresome journey and we were all pretty well used When I got to the station at Qu'Appelle and saw the track and a freight car you cannot tell how glad and thankful I was that the worst of the journey was over. I saw an Indian under the car examining the axles and wheels and after a while he came out and went all around the car and felt of it and then he looked up and down the track, and he could see it for miles, and got down and felt of the rails, and then turned to me as I came up to him and said "How! how! White-man, make big trail and big fire cart and go like the wind." The following year I left Toronto May 1st, 1883, reached Winnipeg on the evening of the 4th, arranged for scows, cables, lumber, shingles, doors, sash, tin, nails, etc., to be sent to Medicine Hat, and floated down the Sas- katchewan to Saskatoon, Mr. S. R. Kerr to boss the job, hut he was to get ready as soon as possible, so I came on to Moose Jaw, took the trail and reached the Colony on 29th May. I found the Government surveyors were surveying our lands along the river and further North of the Crossing, in long narrow strips, like Half-breed lands at the Red River, and as nothing 1) Mr. Lake is here, and from time to time subsequently, making a selection from his diary. Page 16

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