Glacier County chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1931-1940, 1940-02-09
By WALTER E. TAYLOR

BY WALTER E. TAYLOR
In the files of the Montana state
historical library at Helena are
number of interesting manuscripts
early-day official Of the Hudson's
Bay Co. in the northwest. These
manuscripts are crammed with in
teresting first-hand material on
the fur trade, tales of travel in
western Montana and neighboring
states. There are "reminiscences OF
pioneer ways and Indian life and,
most unusual of all, there are sew
eral long narrative poems and
number of plays. One of the plays
is a tragedy based on the Whitman
massacre.
Jim Bridger, John Golfer and most
of the others who engaged in the FUR
trade in Montana early in the 18th
century were uneducated men some OF
them scarcely able to sign their own
names. True, Bridger did get a taste
of Shakespeare when he hunted with
Sir st. George Gore. but he admitted
later that he only listened to Cores
readings from the Bard because the
Irishman accompanied each reading
with generous handouts OF fine irish
whisky he had brought from the old
sod.
Angus Macdonald, unlike his con-
temporaries in the fur trade, had re-
ceived q good education in his youth
and his writings show literary ability
of high caliber. He was deep thinker
and philosopher. He packed a fun set
of Shakespeare up and down the
rivers and trails of the northwestern
wilderness and this library was as i'm
portant part of his equipment as
were the traps and trade goods. HIS
writings contain many references 10
Shakespeare, the Bible, and othei pune,
classics. He was one of those who read
and appreciated Robert Burns long be
fore that Scottish poet knew the world
wide fame that was later his.
Make Fascinating Reading
The manuscripts in the Montana
historical library are only lew OF
many Macdonald wrote. Others, equal
" interesting, are owned by his de-
scendants. Oddly enough, n b o d
knows for sure Just how these papers
found their way into the files OF the
library. They have been there loT
many years and it is thought that
these scripts may be some OF those
Angus Macdonald gave to his son, the
late Duncan Macdonald, OF Nlarada.
Mont. Duncan gave the manuscripts
to Judge Knowles of Helena, and per-
haps they were given to the horary
by the judge. Whatever route they
came by, the papers are there, ana
they make fascinating reading.
The manuscripts are not signed by
Angus Macdonald but before her
death, Mrs Christina Macdonald VII
liams, daughter of the famous trader:
identified the handwriting rs that OF
her father and said he had written
portions of the manuscripts while
Staying at her home in British Co
lumbia.
The name of the MacDonalds APP
pears often in the annals OF the tur
trade in the. northwest especially IN
connection with the Hudson's Bay Co
These doughty. strong.willed ScotS
served the company well, pushing its
trade ever farther into the wilderness.
When he retired to his farm in Mon
tana toward the close of the last cen
tury, Angus Macdonald was 3 4d haS
shareholder in the company. He nad
given it the best that was in him and
in return the company had treated
him well.
The first of the Macdonald clan to
enter the service OF the Hudson's Bay
Co. in the northwest was John Mac.
Donald, of Garth, Scotland. He Joined
the company as clerk in 1871 and rep
resented it in the Columbia river
country and at other outpostS until
1916, when he retired to farm at
Grays Creek, Ont Johns distant rela-
tive, DR.. Archibald Macdonald, quit
the practice of medicine in Scotland
to come to the northwest as a Hud-
sons Bay Co. employee, and 1t was
he who got Angus, his nephew, his first
job on the frontier
Angus Macdonald was born Oct. Is,
1916, at Craig House" manor house
on the shore of Loeb Torridan, Ros
shire, Scotland. He was educated pri-
vately, with a view to becoming law
yer, but when he was 81 years old he
left Scotland to become an apprentice
clerk for the Hudson's Bay Co. He
partly because Of his good work and
a winning manner, partly because OF
his good connections. Most of the Mac
Donalds in the employ of the great
trading firm were relatives of the
youthful Angus. Nepotism flourishes
in all British enterprise and the Hud-
sons Bay Co. was no exception.
The first mention of Angus MacDon-
aid in Hudson's Bay Co. records is
found in the minutes of meeting of
the company council held at Red River
in 1889. He was then assigned to the
Flathead country, still an apprentice,
but in 1912 he was written into the
records as a full-fledged employee, at
a salary of rs pounds year. During
the next ten years he moved from
post to post and in.1852 took over man.
agement of Fort Colville, in what is
now the eastern part of the state of
Washington. He was made factor of
that post, a position once held by his
uncle, Archibald Macdonald. Colville
was unfinished when Macdonald took
over and he completed the building. 1t
was the last post established by the
Hudson's Bay Co. in what is now
United States territory. 1t was the
company'S head office for a vast ter
ritory and Angus was like a dictator
His word was law in the wilderness, for
the Hudson's Bay Co. was then all
powerful and its factors were men of
Importance
Married Nez Perez Girl
IN l84O Angus Macdonald had mar
rled Catherine, sister of Eagle of the