Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1885-11-26

tied in France at the beginning Of the
last century. and one of his ancestors
married a French woman. Subse-
quensly this ancestor went TO Ireland
and his son married an Irish woman
and emigrated TO Canada, Here the
family became absorbed by the
French Canadians, and the naae
through constant mispronunciauen,
was changed tc Rel, although the
registry ia the Parish where they sell
tied, bear witness to the fact that the
hsme was originally Riegel.
Louis Riel's father, Jean Baptlste
Rlel, WAS q famous trapper of the
Northwest and the most influential
man among the French Half Breeds
| lie headed an instruction against the
1 Hulson's Bay company in 1S49 and
forced a settlement Of the grievances
OF which his people complained. His
son Louis he intended for the priest
hood and sent him to school to S..
Boniface, where his quick intelligence
soon attracted the attention of Arch
bishop Taehe, who took thu young
Metis student under his protection.
lie sent him to ST, Mary's College,
Montreal where he received a good
education from tie Jesuit fathers.
He did not however enter the priest
hood, and for time studied
law ia the office of Hon. Ma. Lsilam
me, An ex minister of Justice. He did
not succeed at the law and finally re-
| turned 10 the Northwest, married, and
settled down as farmer.
Riel was the leader OF the half-breed
instruction in Manitoba in 1869, but
had associated with him as secretary
of stale' an Irish schoolmaster named
ODOnohue. The expedition led by
Colonel, now General Lord Wolseley
put speedy and bloodless end TO the
rising, but Rel escaped capture and
later was elected to the Dominion
Parliament 10 represent q district al
the northwest. He appeared in the
house and signed the roll but the
seat was declared vacant and he was
placed under arrest. He feigned h.
sanity and was placed in q lunatic osy
,um, from which he was subsequently,
released. After this he came to tbt
United States and settled among tut
French Canadian hall-5reeds in Nor
tana. From his retreat, however, be
kept up a constant communication
with his countrymen at home anC
made several visits to the Northwest
Finally, ON the invitation of his Metz
friends, he returned permanently Il
the Northwest Territory, and settleC
down ON farm. He at once assumed
the leadership of the dissatisfied, anC
after the failure of all peaceful efforts
to secure a satisfactory settlement, The
instruction was finally decided on
The result is too fresh ia the memory
of our readers TO need recapitulatior
here.
In appearance and manner Louis
Rel struck one as an educated French
man, without any trace of lndiar
blood. His face was very striking
out exactly handsome. In height ht
was about five feet seven inches, anS
he had a strongly-knit frame, Hi
spoke French with great purity, al
though he was perfectly at home il
the dialect used by the habitans
which is mixture Of the old patoi
Of Normandy and Brittany, from
which provinces most of the frs
French settlers in CaRade came. III
spoke English with great huency
and with only sight French accent
lie was unquestonably a man Of con
siderable ability aud probably OF per
feetly sound mind, adopting the de
vice of feignng insanity to save hi
life. He loathed English rule, ant
the ambition Of his life was to built
up French Canadian republic.