The Irish standard., 1905-04-22

2, 1906.
do everything from handling bron
cho to combating savage only tc
learn that he can't keep up with the
procession for the simple reason as
the French say, that one has much to
learn in the woods not contained in
LIE cures potee catee cheesm. Tc
neither of these classes did Father
Lacombe belong. He realized that one
is up against facts in the wilderness
not theories, and to clothe those facts
in our eastern ideas of propriety is
about as incongruous as to dress an
Indian in the cast off garments of a
white man. Instead of expecting the
Indians to adopt the white mans mode
of life Father Lacombe adopted the
Indians. He took part in their hunts
| lived in their tents and fought with
! them when necessary to preserve life.
He lived with the Black Feet, re-
nowned in early history and in all
stories of frontier life as the most
war-like of all the western tribes.
They lived in the northern Rockies
and had for their neighbors the vaga.
bond Crees with whom from days i'm
memorial the Blackfeet carried on war.
Before Father Lacombe and other mis-
| ssionaries visited them these hostile
| tribes that had but two occupations:
that of hunting the buffalo and steal
ing horses from other tribes. The
author in Outing gives a most vivid
description of fight between the
Black Feet and the Crees in which
the Black Feet were greatly outnum-
bered. 1t was an instance where there
was absolute necessity for the Black
Feet to fight or the band would be ex,
terminated. The Crees knew Father
Lacombe for he had been among them
when their tribe was ravished by the
smallpox scourge and for acts of hero
ism performed at that time he gained
their respect. 1t happened that the
Crees when they discovered the priest
fighting in the ranks of the Black
Feet refused to fight against him and
abandoned the attack which if pressed
meant total determination. The story
of Father Lacombe is but the counter
part of many others that might be re-
lated of the wilderness The Indians
owe great deal to those missionaries
of civilization, but civilization owes
still more to them.
This summer there will be cele-
brated at Portland, Oregon, centen-
nial of Lewis and Clark exposition.
TO these men has been given the
credit of being the real discoverers of
the overland route to the Pacific. They
were not the first. Before them were
the rollicling JOY Gus Canadian-French
voyagers sent out by the Northwest
Fur Company and after them and be-
fore Lewis and Clark, Kit Carson and
those other indomitable spirits who
accompanied him in his hunt. But be-
fore them all were the French Jesuits
and the French Oblates of whom
Father Lacombe is one. Very few of
the great number OF people who will
visit Portland this summer and who
will have related to them the adven-
lures of Lewis and Clark will learn
anything about the real pioneers of
this great Northwest. For the first
white man to visit the Rockies and to
penetrate those stupendous fortresses
were the French missionaries carrying
the cross. Just as the first white man
to visit the Valley Of the Mississippi
and the Great Lakes were Fathers
Hennepin and Marquette. The French
are natural explorers, but the French
but he is the advance agent in every
land of civilization and Christianity.
Without attempting to detract from
the credit due the army officers, Lewis
and Clark, we nevertheless think that
is would be nothing but justice while
the nation is celebrating the anniver-
sary of their accomplishments to give
little attention to the claim of men
who many years before Lewis and
Clark ever saw the waters of the Mis-
souri, had actually crossed the great
plains from the Great Lakes to the
Rockies and had crossed over the
Rocky mountains into what is now
British Columbia and were actually
living with the savage tribes. For
even before the daredevil Carson as
cended the Missouri these French
missionaries had established them
selves far to the North. The article
in Outing is interesting because OF
the individual character that it por-
trays, but it is of intensely more his
torical value from the fact that it re.
calls large class of men who have
been given altogether too little atten-
tion and credit as the real pathfinders
of the Rockies.
RELIGION IN NEW YORK,