The Sun and the New York herald., 1920-03-02
GREAT JUBILEE TO MARK --~.'
MANITOBA,S FIFTY YEARS
DOminion's Oldest Prairie Province Will Celebrate
Achievements and Lay the Foundations for
More Brilliant Future.

Premier Of Manitoba.
Written Especially for THE SUN AMI
New YoRK HERALp.
FIRST PAPER.
The birthday OF Manitoba. the frst
province OF Canada TO enter conred.
eratlon after tho creation OF the Domin.
Ion In 1857, occurs on Thursday, July
lb. next, when we shall have completed
fifty years OF existence as a province
The act creating Manitoba was As.
sented to on May ~, 1870. but did NOT
come into force until jury IS, 1870
The latter Is, therefore. the real birth
day, but the month OF May is i'm
portant as an anniversary date for an.
! other reason.
The creation OF the new province was
only possible because OF the extinction
OF the rights claimed by the great
Hudson's Bay Company, for so many
years the overload OF all the immense
territory formerly known as Rupert's
land. within which Manitoba was com.
| prised, The charter OF the company
was signed by Charles II. on May q,
1870 and under II the company is still
| doing business with their headquarters
In Winnipeg. the site OF the ancient
Fort Garry, so that this great corpora
ton OF merchant princes and adVentur-
ers, with whom the history OF Manitoba
iS so indlssolubly bound. will celebrate
on May 3. next. the 25Oth anniversary
OF their foundation.
The year 1890 is, therefore, a men,
! orable one for our province. and we
propose TO celebrate II fittingly by hold
Ing the nth session OF the fifteenth
Legislature In the new Parliament
buildings, one Of the most magnificent
architectural piles ever erected IN
Canada. The construction Of this build =
Ing. In accordance with the general plan
OF Frank Simon, a celebrated British
| architect with the beautiful interior
decorations and carvings, constitutes un-
doubtedly the finest structure OF the
kind in the Dominion.
| Early History OF the Province.
Manitoba is the most central province
or the northern half OF this continent
Nnd glance at the map will show
that Its capital. Winnipeg. is practically
the central point Of North America. The
| most inland OF the nine Canadian
provinces, Manitoba. in 1870 becomes a
seaport State from whose shores argosies
or golden. grain may sail to all the
world, owing to the completion OF the
Hudson Bay Railway to the shores
OF the Hudson Bay
The boundaries Of the Province were
| extened to the bay in 1912, and with the
opening OF this short sea route to Eu-
rope saving Of something like LOO
miles Of railway haul Is effected from
the grain fields Of the Middle West thus
opening up glorious possibilities when
the great inland sea, which Is really the
! Mediterranean OF North America, is fully
| exploited.
SO far as Is known the original Man
| itoEans were race OF mound builders In
| the stone age, whose scattered remains
| and implements offer o rich field to the
archaeologlst, rs yet almost untouched
There is reason to identify them with
the early Mexlcans, who may have mi
grated from this region. How, when or
| why they vanished. II not by migration,
is mystery. Their successors were the
three great Indian natlons-the Crees, a
branch Of the Algonquin family: the
Chippewas or Ojibways, who were of the
| same stock. and the Assiniboines, a
branch Of the famous Sioux race.
The earliest explorations Of Europeans
cnly antedate the gentleman adventurers
Of the Hudson's Bay Company by about
halt century. BY sea. along the north
ern coast line, came Hudson, ButtonX
and James. BY land, lake and portage
| came Raddison. Duluth, La Verendrye
and the other French explorers and fur
traders. But all OF these only touched the
fringe of the vast prairie producing re.
gion Of to-day. The French, however, as
well as the Scotsmen of the Hudson
lay Company, ware not really settlers.
Early Scotch Settlers.
The first white settlers were chiefly
trappers and hunters-the halfbreed cit
iZens. who played so important a part In
the history Of the country n little later
on. But the first real producing settlers
Of European origin who made Manitoba
their home and helped TO build up the
commonwealth in this country were the
sturdy band Of pioneers from Scotland
and the Orkney Isles, who, under Lord
Sclhirk braved the terrors Of the north
ern seas, rivers and lakes and built their
homes on the banks OF the Red River.
Their names survive In our best known
families. They were the Pilgrim Fathers
Of Manitoba and the lnadian west.
At the time Lord Selklrk made his
plans for populatlng this country he
owned 40 per cent. Of the Hudson Bay
stock. The land grant he obtained was
liz, 900 square miles In extent, or about
two and a half times the size OF the
frst limits OF the Province Of Manitoba.
Two days labor a year bought a farm
for the Selkirk settlers. or other easy
terms provided. Yet the little settle
ment, several times renewed, suffered
from all the disadvantages of pioneer
life, weather conditions, grasshopper
fomines, and hostile Indians combining
to test their endurance and resolve.
Fort Garry was the seat of govern
ment and consequently the Hudson Bay
Company and its governors practically
ruled the land until negotiations were
opened In 1859 for the extinction of the
company's claims other than their trad
ing and fur rights.
Rebellion Breaks Out.
The period between the passing Of
the old system and the Inauguration of
the new province was a stormy one. A
rebellion of the halfbreeds under Louis
Riel occurred. looking back on the de-
lnands made, free Of the local prejudices
and racial feelings Of the times, II Is
hard to say that the malcontents were
holly wrong. Many Of their demands
nre still demands of Manltobans to-day,
but their cause was injured by the vio-
lence Of their leaders and the murders
which damned a cause not without its
good points.
The Parliament Of Canada was the
first Of the new Dominion. In creating
and admitting the new province It was