Native Chiefs and Famous Metis
Leadership and Bravery in the Canadian West
AUTHOR: Holly Quan
FORMAT: 5.5 x 8.5 pb / 128 pages
ISBN-10: 1-55153-965-9
ISBN-13: 9781551539652
These tales of bravery, courage, and decisive action in times of terrible conflict are the stories of heroes. Although the lives of the Native chiefs and famous Métis were often tinged with sadness and loss, they were also an inspiration. Jam-packed with adventures and battles, these tales ultimately tell of the negotiations, broken promises, and harsh realities of the changing face of the West.
Prologue
The Iron Stone had always been there... embedded in a hillside. To the Blackfoot and Cree of the western plains, the Iron Stone was the embodiment of powerful spirits, a source of strength, power, protection, and luck. In spring, people travelled great distances to the Iron Stone. They burned sweetgrass. They sang songs of celebration. They asked the stone for good hunting.
In later times, geologists would say the Iron Stone was a meteorite that landed near the present-day town of Killam, Alberta. The Iron Stone weighed about 200 kilograms, one of the largest meteorites ever found in Canada.
To the Reverend George McDougall, the Iron Stone was a pagan symbol. With considerable effort in the early spring of 1866, he had the stone dug from its resting place, loaded onto a wagon, and carted to Victoria mission, east of Edmonton. But that wasn't the end of the stone's journey. McDougall sent it by boat down the North Saskatchewan River to Fort Garry and on to Toronto, to be proudly displayed on the lawn of the Methodist college, where he was trained - a trophy of his struggle to tame the people of the western plains.
That spring, when the Cree and Blackfoot came again to visit the Iron Stone, they were shocked to discover an enormous tragedy: their source of protection was gone. Their link with the buffalo spirits, their defense against evil and disasters, had mysteriously vanished. The elders predicted war, disease, and starvation.
All their predictions came true.
About the Author
Holly Quan lives in the foothills of southwestern Alberta among the poplars and coyotes. She's the author of two guide books, in addition to writing magazine articles on travel, food, horses, marketing, and whatever else piques her interest. When she's not working on her novel manuscript - a work now many years in the making - she loves to ski, ride, hike, swim, drink wine with her friends, and howl at the moon.
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