The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1901-11-09
GERHARD TERRORIST.
Second InstaIlment of a Compre-
hensive Write-Up of the
Late Missionary.
HIS LIFE AND WORKS.
BY One Who Lived at His
Mission During the Early Days
of Its Establishment.
Jacobsville, Mich, Nov. 8, 1901.

Continued from last week.
Itmust be admitted that Father
Terhorst could hardly have accom-
plished his object had not several
fortunate circumstances united to
further the same. With the in
creasing influx of whites in the
Lake Superior country, the fishing
industries in Keweenaw Bay took a
new start aud were carried on upon
much more extensive scale. In
consequence thereof the fishing
grounds soon got exhausted, and
the Indians, who had but few nets,
could not catch enough to satisfy
their own wants. At the same
time lumbermen found their way in
to tpp,hitherto unbroken wilderness
of tie upper peninsula. Camps
sprang up like mushrooms. Soon
great masses of logs blocked the
river channels until finally, over all
this broad expanse, there was not a
stream big enough to float log
which was not used for "the drive. !"
The forests, whose virgin soil had
only been trodden by the moccas-
ined foot OF the trapper and hunter,
or perchance some early explorer,
re-echoed the voices of the ubiquitous
lumberjack. What wonder that
beaver, otter, fisher and other
wild game so rapidly decreased that
the Indians had to give up the chase
as a p,:Sns OF living. Thus deprived
of thclt chief resources for subsist-
ence. starvation would have been
their ,ate bad not the same indus
try, by which they were robbed of
it, offered them new aud far bet
ter OF portunity of gaining liveli-
hood. The sawmills erected in close
proximity to the Mission, the white
population, aud the new industries
growing up at their sites furnished
employment to many during the
summer, while all who were able to
swing an AK found congenial work
in the lumber camps. AS a result
every family at the Mission has now
q comfortable home, a garden and
potato patch, COW or two, and
some chickens. And though it can
not be said of any Of them that they
derive their support from the tillage
of the ground, the fact that they do
support themselves and lead the life
of civilized people is sufficient. That
they also have learned to share the
latter's vices we cannot deny; their
worst enemy-the bane of ciyili-
zation, and which seems to follow it
as its inevitable inheritance-is the
whiskey bottle.
Father Terhorst's greatest achieve
ment for his Mission, however, is
the founding of the Sisters school.
Concerning its history we can not
do botter than to quote verbatim
from a volume entitled Life and
Labors of Right Rev. FIR. Baraga by
p. Chrys Verwyst, o. +. NJ, (Mil-
waukee, Wis. M. III. Wiltzens g. Co.,
1900)'
"The government had appointed a
certain Mr.. ID. as Indian teacher
for the L'Anse reservation. He
was the father of seven children, but
totally unfit to teach Indian child
ren. FIR. Terhorst soon saw this and
was. determined to secure Sisters
for his school. Mr.. d. was, OF course,
highly displeased and 10 letter
complained of the father to Bishop
Baraga. The latter wrote to Terhorst
not to molest Mr.. d., advising him at
the same time, of the impractical
bility Of having Sisters in L'Anse, as
there were no means of supporting
them. But FIR. Terhost did not re-
linquish his idea. Mr.. d. then
tried to turn the Indians against
him and made up petition to- have
him removed. He endeavored to
get the Indians to sign the petition,
who however, politely but firmly re-
fused. So it was sent to Sault Ste.
Marie without their signatures. The
good bishop felt somewhat aggrieved
at FIR. Terhorst aud wrote to him:
Tforbid yod in virtue OF holy obe-
dieuce to speak against d. to have
him removed. Next Sunday FIR.
Terhorst told bis Indians what the
bishop had written to him, assur.