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CAPE BRETON ISLAND is the
easternmost section of the Dominion of Canada. This should not be news
to-day in any part of the English-speaking world. But the place is so
exclusive, so distant, so meditative, and so much alone that busy
outsiders can almost be excused for not knowing very much about it. It
is not so very long since an English Prime Minister was, it is said,
fairly taken sick with surprise when the fact was borne in upon him that
Cape Breton was “an Island.” The charming innocence of the English
statesman (?) in respect of the geography of the western world finds its
counterpart in the nonchalant assurance of the glorious French King who,
in a formal State paper, described the vast region which now constitutes
the wide Dominion of Canada as “a few acres of snow.”
That Cape Breton is not better known in the great centres of light and
progress is due, I fear, in a large measure, to our own negligence. We
are not sufficiently persevering in giving proper publicity to our
splendid insular heritage. Nature has been kind to us, but I am not very
sure that we have been just to Nature. What this place wants above all
things is capital, and in this feverish, work-a-day world of our time,
capital is coy, and must be coaxed. At all events we ourselves—sons of
the sod — should always be concerned in pointing out to capital any
reasonable inducements we have to offer. We should lose no legitimate
opportunity to impress on the outside world the natural treasures, the
rich resources, the industrial potentialities, the capabilities for
development, and the room for growth and investment which our Island
home possesses. We have always been too reticent; too timid altogether.
Our case is an illustration of modesty run into sin. In all our
portraitures of what we are and have, however, there is one thing which
we should be ever careful to observe, namely, honesty and accuracy of
representation. “Tell the truth and shame the devil.” Nothing is to be
gained, but much may be lost by our indulging in the fairytales and
“frauds of fancy,” with which some sharp speculators delight to beguile
their dupes.
Cape Breton, then, is an Island —an old Island with an interesting
history — but in many important respects it is away behind nearly all
the other old-inhabited sections of British North America. It is built
much after the pattern of the old traditional giants so fascinating in
fight and fable, with the head bathing in the swift-flowing waters of
the Strait of Canso, and the feet projecting in menacing attitude into
the rocky reefs of Cape North, as if to kick back the rolling swell of
the great Atlantic. It measures about 120 miles from head to foot, and
some seventy-five miles across the shoulders. Its population in 1811 was
86,854 souls, distributed as follows: Inverness County, 25,779; Victoria
County, 12,432; Cape Breton County, 34,244; and Richmond County, 14,399.
These people viewed merely as instruments for work — whether for earth
or heaven — cannot be excelled on this continent. They are strong,
healthy, honest, moral, and deeply religious. They can eat anything, and
do anything, consistent with the dignity of man and the English
Constitution.
Since the treaty of Paris, in 1763, Cape Breton Island has been British
territory, and for the last three-quarters of a century an integral part
of the Province of Nova Scotia. During the struggle between France and
England over the North American Provinces, Cape Breton changed owners
several times. By the peace of Utrecht, in 1713, Nova Scotia was ceded
to Great Britain, but Cape Breton was retained by France. On the
southern side of the Island, which was then called Isle Royal, the
French built a town called, in honor of Louis of France, Louisburg. This
town was so strong and well protected that it was said to resemble
Dunkirk in France, and was therefore designated the Dunkirk of America.
In 1745 Governor Shirley of Massachusetts conceived the idea of taking
this place from the French. A fleet was sent out for this purpose under
the command of William Pepperell, who was assisted and reinforced by
Commodore Warren with several British men-of-war. After a hard siege
Louisburg fell. In 1748 Cape Breton was again restored to France by the
treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, and a French colony it then continued until
the second siege of Louisburg in 1758. This second siege of Louisburg
was followed up by similar British attacks on Frontenac, Fort Du Quesne,
and Quebec, and in 1763, as already stated, a final period was put to
French dominion in Canada, and Cape Breton, with the rest of the
country, fell permanently into the lap of mother England. I mention
these few facts of history merely to show that, more than a century ago,
two of the most advanced nations of the earth have written in blood
their testimony of Cape Breton’s importance.
About the end of the last and the beginning of the present century a
stream of Scottish immigrants struck the shores of Nova Scotia, Prince
Edward Island, and Cape Breton. They came from the Islands and Highlands
of Scotland — fugitives, many of them, from the cruelty and persecution
which followed the downfall of the Stuart cause. The vast majority of
our people to-day are descendants of those expatriated Scotchmen who, in
many respects, made excellent pioneer settlers. They were stout-hearted
men of fine physique, possessing remarkable courage and powers of
endurance—meet qualities for men making a home in the howling
wilderness. They feared nothing but God, and hoped for nothing but an
honest living, and a happy death. Skilled or ambitious tillers of the
soil they were not. It contented them to sit under their own fig-tree,
with “their hoddin gray and hamely fare,’’ and owe no man. The land then
possessed all its virgin vigor, the crops grew remarkably, the harvest
of the sea was never failing, the wants of the settlers were
comparatively few, and it required but ordinary handwork, with little or
no headwork, to ensure a sufficiency for frugal, unambitious, living.
And being easily satisfied, those good old people “never changed nor
wished to change” their state. Later generations, even unto the present,
have followed their ultra-conservative and crude methods with only too
strict fidelity. This is the first cause of the backward condition of
agriculture in Cape Breton. We need new blood. Our farmers have been too
long wedded to the past. They must learn to live in the new light; they
must rise to business and scientific principles if they expect to.
prosper. We have a first-class food-producing country. River
Inhabitants, River Dennis, the Mabous, the Margarees, Broad Cove,
Cheticamp, Whycocomagh, Middle River, and McKinnon’s Intervale are all
superior farm districts. And these are but a few of the fertile
agricultural tracts of the Island. The river districts are splendidly
adapted to the raising of beef cattle, the mountain districts to the
rising of sheep, and the table-lands to dairying; whilst the most of the
whole country is prepared to yield, under proper treatment, bountiful
grain, root, and vegetable crops. But we must “put off the old man;” we
must adopt ourselves to the present and cease to hang on the past, even
though the doing so may, as no doubt it will, require us to “pluck from
the memory a rooted sorrow.”
Another cause of the comparatively weak condition of husbandry here is,
that the growing intelligence of the country is withdrawn or diverted
from farming, as a calling. This is little short of criminal, for,
despite our other various and valuable pursuits and possible avocations,
farming is, and was, and ever will be, the chief industry of our people.
It is therefore entitled to the best thought and training of our sons
and daughters. But what do we find? As soon as our boys and girls get
hold of a little schooling, particularly if they show any signs of
smartness, they are advised and encouraged, even by the parents, to aim
at some walk of life other than the calling of their fathers. They are
taught to regard farming as ignoble drudgery — something incompatible
with a clever, cultivated mind. The “hard work” of a farmer is held in
terrorum over these young minds, and they are deluded into the belief
that “hard work” can be avoided if they follow some other pursuit. True
enough, farming entails hard word but so does every other line of human
activity. Industry— a high order of industry—is necessary to success in
every station of man without exception. But what gives life, and soul,
and permanent value to industry, on the farm or elsewhere, is the brain
you put in it. And I can think of no occupation which demands and
deserves more brain patronage than does the noble and natural avocation
of tilling the soil. Our farmers must therefore understand that it is
not the illiterate, not the dunces, but the brightest and best of the
family that should be kept on the farm.
And still another reason for the unsatisfactory general progress of our
farmers. Our children do not stay with us. We are short of laborers. The
greatest number and best quality of our working people are giving their
services, and. many of them their lives, to the upbuilding of other
countries. If all the hard labor which our able-bodied young men and
women are compelled to perform for foreigners was put upon Our farms for
five years, the whole face of the Island would be changed beyond
recognition.
In that event our young friends would be bettering their own condition
and ours. If these young people would work half as hard at home as they
must work abroad, the reason for their leaving home would soon
disappear. I want our young folk to give the benefit of their hands,
their hearts and their heads to their native heath. I want them to think
more of ourselves than of any other people in the world. I want them to
cultivate a love for Cape Breton such as cannot be given to any other
country under the sun. I want them to have faith in Cape Breton, faith
in its resources, faith in its future, faith in themselves. I urge these
views not because I wish our men to be sectional or narrow-minded. On
the the contrary, I desire them to be resident and reliable citizens of
the State, always broadminded and patriotic. But the true patriotism,
like charity, begins at home. He serves his country most who serves his
home best.
What can be done to keep these young people at home? That question is
large enough in itself for an interesting lecture. I ask it here merely
to set our people thinking on it. On the instant one plan occurs to me
which might be of practical utility. Our people should form themselves
into certain organizations. The solution of this difficult problem
obviously needs an organized effort. Let the men in the various sections
of the Island combine into industrial associations. For instance, in
farming communities 40 or 50 farmers could join in company to promote
draining, fertilizing, the importation of seed and stock and improved
methods generally. Each could subscribe $10 or $20 to the project, and
all would have a common interest and a common ambition therein. In
lumber districts a similar organization might be formed to buy saw
mills, cut and haul timber, and put the lumber upon the markets. In
fishing districts which are usually more densely peopled, 100 men or
more could combine to build boats for deep sea or shore fishery, and
provide the necessary gear and equipments. In this way many of our young
men could find employment at home, and the general condition would soon
change for the better. Our women, too, would do well to organize in like
manner. In this country our women do a great many things which they
should not be required to do. They make all our bread and butter.
Organizations among them looking, for instance, to improved modes of
baking, cooking and butter-making, could but have good results. A great
deal pi people’s character is formed by the “bread and butter they use.”
What attractions have we to offer to outside men and money? The first
and most pleasant attraction we possess can be seen in our faces—we are
good-looking. This means much. Our people as a whole are hearty, honest,
good-living, and proverbially hospitable. There is not, I think, in the
wide world a piece of ground of the same size and population more
singularly free from vice than is the Island of Cape Breton. Nowhere are
the life and property of a stranger more safe. Ours is a Christian
community. Though our isolated position has hitherto deprived us of many
of the lights of modern thought and progressive society, yet, we have
our compensation in the fact that we have long enjoyed and appreciated
the saving light of Christ’s gospel.
Probably the first feature of this place which would impress strangers,
particularly Americans of means and leisure, is its eminent adaptability
to the purposes of summer resorts. In mid-summer the natural scenery
here is unsurpassable, and the air is so pure and good that it seems to
come direct from Paradise. You must come here to appreciate this. Come
in the leafy month of June, when the fields and the forests are robed in
their gorgeous mantle of green; when the birds begin to sing, and the
brooks begin to babble; when mountain speaks to mountain, and even the
crags and peaks hold grateful converse in returning light; when the
hills and the dales and the meadows are suddenly breathing forth the
powers and the praises of a glorious First Cause; when the glinting
waters of our limpid lakes reflect as nothing else can the born beauty
of their bonnie borders — come at such a time, and if you do not enjoy
and admire what you see, ’tis because your soul rejects the divine
afflatus of Nature’s lofty! inspirations! The beautiful Bras d’ Ors,
which literally divide the Island into two parts, and which, in point of
scenic charms, rival, if not outrival, the historic lakes of Killarney,
could be encircled with the summer residences of wealthy foreigners. So
could lovely Lake Ainslie, Whycocomagh Bay, West Bay, and East Bay.
Along the coast, too, there are numerous harbors, bays, and beaches that
could be developed into delightful watering places. Americans of means
and leisure could come here by land, or in their yachts, and spend the
summer in most wholesome enjoyment at comparatively small cost. They
could come on their bicycles, for that matter. Just think what a relief
it would be to them to escape the preliminary and accompanying furore of
an ocean voyage! None of the bewildering preparations, the plague of
packing, the jacket of trunks, the rush for tickets, the continued
fatigue, the sea sickness, and the deep-rooted swearing incidental to a
European trip. Here in the virtuous retreats of Cape Breton, whither
they can come without any worrying ceremonies, they can rest, health,
freedom and fun — all the fun that is good for them. Here all varieties
of out-door recreation are conveniently at hand, such as boating,
bathing, angling, gunning, driving or any of the manly sports. It was
only since the C. B. Railway was built eight or nine years ago that Cape
Breton was properly discovered by tourists and travellers. Henceforth
their volume will increase rapidly from year to year. A syndicate of
American gentlemen that would build and provide suitable summer
residences and hotels at commanding points on this Island would, in my
opinion, be supplying a telling want, at a large profit.
Our fisheries rank among the finest in the world. The waters all around
us, inland and coastal, are teeming with numerous kinds of food fish.
Our lakes and large rivers abound in game-fish, such as trout and
salmon, and a boundless quantity of cod, haddock, halibut, herring,
mackerel, lobsters and alewives, fills our coastal waters. If a fair
fishery treaty could be effected by and between this country and the
United States it would, in my humble judgment, be a tremendous advantage
to both nations. And that not merely from a commercial, but also from an
international viewpoint. Had there always been such a compact a great
many of the irritating claims and questions which we have recently
witnessed would be well spared, to the great credit of both of us. The
two countries can never be one, either politically or commercially; but
it is in the highest interests of both that they should be invariably
good friends and neighbors. It is exceedingly to be regretted that the
various offers of reciprocity which Canada made to the United States
should have been declined by the latter country, and it is equally to be
hoped that more generous counsels may yet prevail at Washington. But in
any case, I cannot help thinking that our invaluable fisheries
constitute an admirable invitation to American capital: aye, more, they
may constitute the basis of peace and goodwill for ever between the two
noble families of the English-speaking race on this continent!
Even the woods of Cape Breton are sadly sighing for commercial society.
We have no sky-piercing pines or cedars, but we are actually covered
with spruce. Hardwood is likewise abundant and of various. kinds, such
as maple, birch, beech, ash, and some oak. Some large tracts of
well-timbered Crown-land in the interior of the country are yet
unpeopled and ungranted. We have also a very considerable quantity of
juniper which would seem to be easily marketed for ships’ knees, railway
ties, and such uses. There are excellent possibilities here for
pulp-mills, saw-mills, peg-factories, last-factories,
furniture-factories, and various other forms of wood manufactures. Who
will come and convert these latent possibilities into living agencies of
progress and of happiness?
But probably our greatest inducement to foreign capital lies in our
mines and minerals. We have gold, silver, lead, copper, galena, coal,
and coal-oil. We have also a few good free-stone quarries, fire clay,
soapstone, gypsum, limestone, and some fine deposits of marble. Iron-ore
in immense quantity is found around Whycocomagh, and, being near a
number of collieries, all the natural requisites for successful
smelting-works are present there. The existence of gold in promising
quantity has been established beyond a doubt at Whycocomagh, Middle
River, and Cheticamp. I am not a mining expert and do not wish to say
anything with regard to those gold mines that would mislead the public
or strangers who wish to invest money in such ventures. All that I can
say positively is that the discovery of gold at those three points is
just as genuine and certain as in Klondyke, and all that I ask is that
men of enterprise and capital should come and see. The deposit of galena
at Cheticamp is one of immense size, and also, I am informed, one of
rare value. A gentleman from Montana who has had large experience in the
mines of that and other states, and who had made careful personal
inspection of the Cheticamp find, told me in my own office it was the
finest property of the kind he ever saw, and the easiest to operate. The
lime and marble quarry at Marble Mountain, on the shores of West Bay, is
also an exceedingly valuable property. This has been considerably
developed for years, to the great advantage of that interesting section
of the country. But the quality and capacity of the quarry are such as
offer a special bid to much additional force. The gypsum at Grandique,
Mabou, and other points has been well introduced into the commercial
world, and bids fair to become an important factor in our potential
wealth. The oil wells at West Lake Ainslie have been “hanging fire” for
some years. A number of American gentlemen of fair repute have recently
renewed operations there. Derricks have been built, engines bought, and
extensive preparations for boring are being made. Our earnest wish for
those plucky speculators is that they may, in the richest sense of the
expression, “strike oil.” And if they do, the classic banks of elegant
Ainsiie will become, on this Island, the grand illuminating centre of
the fates that are to be.
Of all our vast variety of minerals coal alone has been to any large
extent developed. On the southern or Sydney side of the Island quite a
number of collieries have been in operation for several decades. Thes6
have enlisted both British and American capital and have thoroughly
demonstrated the wisdom of its investment. A few years since a strong
corporation, commonly called “the Whitney syndicate,” bought the major
portion of those mines, and has since been working them with increased
force and improved appliances. Under this fresh stimulus the output of
coal has increased, and will likely continue to increase rapidly on that
side of the Island. Mr. Whitney (and his successors) will control the
coal destinies of that side of Cape Breton for the next century. He
therefore becomes a striking personage in our history. I was of those
who always believed that the Government of Nova Scotia made a most
improvident and perilous deal with the Dominion Coal Company. I felt
that it was unwise to tie up, for one hundred years and more, in the
hands of a soulless body of foreigners, so much of our provincial
producing power. But the “deal” has been effected and, whether wise or
unwise, we have now no alternative but to accept it. I think now that it
is the duty of every man in Cape Breton to render every possible help,
and no hindrance, to Mr. Whitney in the proper prosecution of his huge
enterprise. We must recognize in him the right to manage his own
affairs, even if ft is not done to our liking. He is the master in his
own house and, so long as he keeps within his legal latitudes, we have
no title to dictate to him. It is Mr. Whitney’s interests and ours to
make his property as productive as possible. To this end it may be
necessary for him at times to concentrate his forces to the
disappointment and probable loss of particular localities. But if the
general interests are served by this massing of energy, the claims of
individual sections should yield to the greater claims of the public
good. There may be, however, such a thing as using our people wrongly,
in which case we must never hesitate to stand upon our rights, no matter
who invades them. I am very sure Mr. Whitney is too knowing a man not to
realize that, in this as in his own country, men have certain rights
which cannot be transferred on paper.
There are good shipping facilities on this southern side of the Island.
The harbors of Sydney, Arichat and Louisburg are all capital harbors.
The last named is one of the best in the Maritime Provinces, and is open
all the year round. It is inconceivable that so magnificent a natural
port was intended for mean destiny, and it is no wild hope to entertain
that it may become the favorite winter port of Canada. When the
Newfoundland railway begins to run with full power; when fast and
regular steam communication is established between the British Isles and
“the ancient colony,” and between the latter and Cape Breton; when the
trade currents of the two Islands begin to flow freely and naturally
into each other; we can expect to see rising rapidly to their
appropriate ranks among the loyal outposts of Great or Greater Britain
these two devoted sentinels of the mighty Saint Lawrence.
The Northwestern or Inverness side of Cape Breton is just as rich in
mineral deposits as is the southern or Sydney side, and much richer in
agricultural capabilities. On this coast, however, the harbors are not
so good, and the facilities for transportation are wanting. A railroad
is the crying need of Inverness County. Various companies have been
chartered, from time to time, to construct railways here, but this far
none has succeeded. The Governments of the Dominion, of the Province,
and of the Municipality have signified their willingness to aid the
construction of railways here with very liberal subsidies. The county
has shown a most commendable public spirit in the notable generosity of
its proffered assistance to these necessary undertakings. If the
Inverness and Richmond Railway Company will be able to complete
successfully its projected road from the Strait of Canso to Cheticamp,
the evolution of the next ten years in Inverness will be a very marked
one. Will this road pay? I answer without fear that it will pay. For the
first few years it may not be a paying concern, taken by itself; but
after that I venture to think it would, under prudent management, yield
a handsome and increasing annual dividend. We have everything to offer a
railway that any country has; we have the products of the farm, the
products of the forest, the products of the mine, and the products of
the sea. Owing to the absence of first-class harbors on the coast nearly
all our exports and imports would be carried by rail. In a country of
such varied resources as this a railway would open up numerous avenues
of trade of which we are now unaware. We have, therefore, no reason to
doubt that a railway in this county would be a satisfying financial
success.
On the Inverness coast splendid deposits of coal have been discovered,
opened up and practically tested, at Port Hood, Mabon, Broad Cove, St.
Rose, and Chimney Corner. These mines are about 15 miles apart. In all
of them the quality of the coal is pronounced superior, and it is fairly
correct to say that the quantity is apparently without limit. The mine
at Broad Cove is in a fair way to become widely known in the hands of
the Broad Cove Coal Company — a corporation of demonstrated strength and
character. Vigorous work has been done there during the past three
years. The mine is now in a condition to turn out 2000 tons a day
easily, and the opening of the harbor adjacent thereto is in an advanced
state of progress. The signal success of this enterprise is now
positively assured. I have no manner of doubt but this mine is destined
to become, and that soon, one of the most famous and desirable coal
properties in Canada. What I said of the relations that should exist
between the people of Cape Breton County and Mr. Whitney, applies
equally to the people of Inverness and the manager of the Broad Cove
Coal Company. No foreigners ever started an enterprise in this county
that deserves the cordial co-operation of our people more than do our
honest, hustling, hardworking friend William Penn Hussey, and his
associates in the Broad Cove Coal Company.
Altogether, Cape Breton Island holds out many practicable opportunities
for men of mind, means and ambition, who wish to leave on the pages of
history the glowing impress of a great idea. But we must bring such men
to us. We must help and appreciate our own country, if we expect others
to do so. We must advertise, and keep advertising, the character and
immensity of Nature’s gifts to our land. Otherwise these bounteous veins
of dormant wealth which were intended for our practical comfort and
benefit will continue to remain, as they have already too long remained,
like “painted ships on a painted ocean.”
Let us therefore take hope for the future, work together for the
uplifting of the land of our birth, and make an end of repining and
running down the country. All histories, ancient and modern, teach the
one inspiring lesson, namely, that every nation is made or unmade by the
qualities of its people not extent of territory, not the commanding
force of numbers, not the peculiarities of soil or climate, or yet the
hunted riches of the earth, are the highest guarantees of genuine
greatness. Industry, honesty, intelligence, patriotism, and a Christian
elevation of the public soul — these be the sponsors of a country’s
living fame.
Attest it, ye sons of the hills and the heather! — sons of the valiant
and true! You may tell me that our hopes have been slow of realization;
that improvements have been long a-coming. Granted. The strongest and
best of us often feel borne down by the probability that we may never
see the actual fruition of our hopes and efforts. That should not deter
us from doing our duty. What should be thought of a farmer who would
refuse to sow any seed in the spring from fear that he would die before
the harvest. We are all in God’s hands; and we do not live for ourselves
alone. We must have a thought and a care for others. The spirit of our
fathers speaks but to us still, and common justice demands that we
should, at least, endeavor to pay to posterity what we owe to our
ancestors.
I have done. The length of my paper has tired you. For this, be pleased
to accept my apology in the words and spirit of the Roman orator:
“Who is here so vile
that will not love his country?
If any speak: for him have I offended.”
J. L. McDOUGALL |
