The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1913-03-17

/ The hardships endured 10y carly
| pioneers. the strife for existence be-
| ginning In the early hfties and the UNI
| surmountable barriers which faced the
| settlers of the copper country. were
| unfoldcl Saturday To "A reporter Tor
| The News by Mrs. Jane Masters, of
| Centennial. one of the oldest of the
| copper country's residents. Mrs Mas
tiers is cighty-siN years of age still In
good health and disseminates infor-
| nation i'm the manner of one who has
spent the greater part of life I'm study.
Beneath wealth of silvcr-graS hair
| beams a bright countenance with an
| expression OF one only half her age,
| She thinks rapidly and rccollections
| that bring her back three score years
| are told as though they were but oc-
| ourrenCcs of yesterday.
| The first Of our family To come To
Il lpuer Michigan" said Mrs. Masters,
| were my husband and stopfather. In
| 1916. with the organization of The
i old settlers company In Detroit. "a
small party OF English miners was
sent north 10 Misery Bay to open what
L is now known as the Elm River mine.
In making a detour of kewcenaw
|, point. their boat sought shelter at
II Copper Harbor and landed on the
date of the first election in that To-
cation. They proceeded To Misery
II Bay and thence To Elm River where
they remained until financial affairs of
II the company resulted in suspension
\ of operations in 1Si1. Payment for
H labor was not mado until We rcsort"d
10 legal procedure and at consid-
cradle sacrifice. Money which was due
my relatives was finally received and
| they returned to Detroit. Later In
i 1Si7 our family went to Bruce Mines.
Ontario. We remained there until 1851.
and were given the first taste of real
\ hardship. There were no doors or
windows in the cabin and an arrange
ment of small cedar poles placed upon
the sand was the floor. Difficulties
with the Indians who protested a.ainst
the mining company on the grounds
that they received no payment from
the Canadian government for the
mines. resulted in frequent outbreaks
that finally eliminated in ceaslng OPP
erat!ons.
Terrorized by Indians.
! we then felt for Micha Bay, abou.
| fifty miles distant from the Canadian
500 and remained there until Indians
again threatened the little colony. To
escape what may have been mas
sacre and which we constantly feared,
! a Mr.. Newton. agent of the Point mine
/ walked 10 the 500 and chartered
small schooner. captained by James
! Rendry. the father of Mrs. James By
eis The entire colony. with women
ana children, boarded this boat and
! went to the 500.
".Nt this time there were but three
boats north of the portage, The Mer-
! chant, Julia Palmer and Napoleon.
! The Manhattan which brought US to
| Eaglc River in 1851. was just being
/ superior and we watched the steamer
slowly carried overland for at least
Il week
Mail in those days was not fire.
| uueutly delivered and letter | wrote
) in Detroit to my father at Misery Bay
Dee. -. 1916. did not reach him until
June of the following year. Ever
thing was correspondingly delayed
ana the hardships were many, but we
managed to live through it by con-
stautly hoping comfort would come.
we arrived in Eagle River in 1871
and for six months my husband WORK
I'd at the Manhattan mine. We then
moved to the island of Isle Royalc,
where the Sskawt mine has opened,
| and for some time resided at Rock
IIarbor. The entire populacc there
lived in one big cabin and during
that time chair was unknown \
long bench on both sides of the tables
was the only comfort available. | re"
member when my husband exhibited
the first easy chair-cut from Hour
barrel. The last year we were there,
however. paid courier 50 for bring
ing n chair from Fort William
"The indiana terrorized W. on the
island and each season they would
come over from Canada in bands,
crecting their wigwams directly be.
fore our doors. All the women in the
camp remained in doors and. felt as
ease only when their husbands re-
turned from work.
Greeley Here Only Day.
In 1852 navigation opened 80 late
that the last morsel of meat was eaten.
For six weeks all of us had to subsist
on bread and syrup and so weak did
the men become from this scant nour-
ishment that the mine was closed.
Driven to desperation, twenty men
determined to reach Fort William.
and an improvised boat and sleigh
were skiddCd across the ice. When
water was encountered. the sleigh and
passengers were loaded into the boat
ana the men rowcd until ice again
prevented their progress. They they
would haul the boat from the water
and draw II over the Ice, continuing
> in this manner until they reached
} shore The meat shortage was felt
at the Canadian port. however, and to
their dismay were told that no mea,
could be furnished \ settler came
to their rescue with an offer 10
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