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A HANDBOOK OF METIS FACTS, FANCIES & FIGURES SECTION C [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [H] [I] [J] [K] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [Q] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] [X] [Y] [Z] Campbell, Maria - Capote - A characteristic item of Metis clothing worn during the mid- to latter stages of the nineteenth century. A hooded white or blue cape--the "capote" protected the Metis from the cold and the rain. Metis clothing, even if it was partly composed of buffalo hide (cape, trousers, and sometimes shirt), was made to an even greater degree of cloth imported from Europe; the women especially preferred European clothing, though they often had recourse in winter to skirts of hide. By 1870 the Metis clothing made of hide had almost disappeared completely. Carlton Trail - The Carlton trail was first blazed by Sir George Simpson in 1841. Fort Carlton became the juncture of the Fort Pitt Trail and the famous Carlton Trail. In the autumn of 1795, the original Carlton House was established just below the junction of the two branches of the Saskatchewan River. The post was moved to its present location in or about 1810 to compete with the North West Company post established there. In succeeding years, Carlton House (which came to called Fort Carlton, or just Carlton) acquired importance in the affairs of the Hudson's Bay Company, both in terms of the Saskatchewan District and as related to more northerly operations. Fort Carlton, near the wintering ground of the buffalo, was a great pemmican post in its southerly aspect, while it drew an abundance of peltry from the woods to the north; it was the point of departure of the pemmican for the northern brigades, the meat being carried overland to Green Lake in the winter, and then by canoe to Ile a la Crosse in the spring. Cassette - Handmade, rough, wooden trunks of the Metis. These trunks or cassettes were symbolic of the mobility of the Metis family unit and often one of the only items of furniture found in the coarse lodges of their hivernements. Cavreau - Cheechum - Common Metis term for Great-Grandmother. Chee-pie-hoos - Cree term for "evil-spirit-jumping-up-and-down." Chepuyuk - The Chepuyuk were the ghost dancers of the aurora borealis or the "northern lights." Chicot - Chimney Coulee - Chimney Coulee is located on the eastern edge of the Cypress Hills, about 7 kilometers north of the town of Eastend, Saskatchewan. In contrast to the bald prairie, Chimney Coulee offered a broad resource base from which winter camp subsistence could be maintained. The Chimney Coulee area also included many side valleys that could be utilized as effective protection against the winter storms. The crumbling remains of Chimney Coulee mark the site of a number of Metis cabins and encampments in which buffalo hunters and commercial traders wintered from the 1840s to the 1870s. Nearby Hudson Bay Company trader-explorer Issac Cowie established a trading post in 1871. A large band of Metis settled alongside Cowie. According to his account (I. Cowie, The Company of Adventurers: A Narrative of Seven Years in the Service of the Hudson's Bay Company During 1867-1874. Toronto: William Briggs, 1913, pg. 432), Cowie stated that: "The Cypress Hills had become a neutral ground, which the hostile tribes of the surrounding country feared to enter for hunting purposes. Consequently, it had become a natural game preserve, occupied chiefly by red deer and grizzly bears. Our own Indians would not venture to accompany our party to winter there, but the number of Metis frequenting Qu'Appelle had been very largely increased by those who left or ceased to resort to Red River after the establishment of Canadian Government." Cowie collected, in his single season at Chimney Coulee, 750 grizzly-bear pelts, 1,500 elk hides and hundreds of smaller skins, while the other independent traders in the vicinity added substantially to those numbers. As he was leaving Chimney Coulee in the early spring, Cowie witnessed a raiding party of Blackfoot Indians burning their wintering encampment to the ground. Despite the razing of the camp, at least sixty Metis hivernant families reoccupied Chimney Coulee in 1873. Moreover, by this time or shortly thereafter, the community became known as "Hunter's Settlement." Constitution Act of Canada - In 1982, nearly a century after their setback at Batoche, the Metis received the acknowledgement they had sought so defiantly in the latter part of the 19th century, when the Canadian federal government passed the Constitution Act of Canada. These acts recognized the Metis as a founding aboriginal people with its attendant implications for land claims and reparations. In other words, Section 35 of the Constitution Act of Canada, recognizes and affirms Metis Aboriginal Rights. This means that the Metis are an Aboriginal people under section 91 (24) of the Constitution Act (British North America Act) of 1867 and lands set aside and reserved for Aboriginals must also apply to the Metis. Constitution of the Metis Nation of Saskatchewan - The Constitution of the Metis Nation of Saskatchewan is made up of 16 Articles. According to former MNS president, Gerald Morin, who, during his "President's Report to the Metis Nation Legislative Assembly at Batoche, July 21, 1994" stated, "The Constitution of the Metis Nation of Saskatchewan is an expression of our third Order of government (the federal and provincial governments constituting the other two Orders) and is based on our inherent right of self-government.... With the spirit and vision of our Metis ancestors we have adopted a new Constitution which contains all of the elements of a legitimate government. One of the most significant components of this Constitution is the creation of the Metis Nation Legislative Assembly. This Legislative Assembly is made up of the Provincial Metis Council and all Local Presidents across Saskatchewan. The Metis Legislative Assembly has the capacity to pass legislation and laws on behalf of our People in Saskatchewan. Through this process of lawmaking we will gradually assert our areas of jurisdiction as a Metis government--this for example could include jurisdiction over our land and resources, hunting/fishing/trapping, justice, educatiion, healthcare, economic development, etc. When we were structured under the Province's Non-Profit Corporations Act we did not have the capacity to make laws. This is probably the most significant feature of our new government based on our own Constitution. As well the Legislative Assembly finally gives our Local Presidents a legitimate and integral role within our government. The new Constitution also provides for an executive branch of our government. This executive branch is the Provincial Metis Council who are elected provincewide by one person-one vote ballot-box elections at least every three years. The Provincial Metis Council makes up the Council of Ministers and have Cabinet responsibilites and are responsible for introducing Legislation in the Assembly. The Ministers are accountable to the Assembly and ultimately to all their constituents through the ballot box.... Our Constitution also provides for a judicial branch of our government--this of course is the Senate of the Metis Nation of Saskatchewan. This is consistent with our culture and traditions as our elders and most respected members of our communities were called upon to resolve disputes and differences amongst our People.... Our Constitution also for the first time give guaranteed seats to Metis Women in the Provincial Metis Council and the Legislative Assembly." Council of Assiniboia - Following the HBC and NWC merger of 1821, HBC Governor George Simpson established the Council of Assiniboia using a deed poll. Under this deed poll system, 40 per cent of the HBC's profits was consigned into 85 shares. 50 of these 85 shares were apportioned to 25 HBC Chief Factors (i.e. Chief Factor Lawrence Clarke of Carlton House) or, in other words, 2 shares per Chief Factor. 28 shares were apportioned to 28 chief traders and the remaining 7 shares were apportioned to a pension fund. Further to becoming shareholders in the HBC, the Chief Factors and the chief traders also took their seats on the Council of Assiniboia. Each and every council member, including the 25 Chief Factors, the 28 chief traders, the Protestant and Roman Catholic clergy, and the English- and French-speaking Metis representatives--with Governor George Simpson at the helm--were all expected to assist in the operation of the HBC, to govern the Red River Settlement, and to participate in any and all legal and policy decisions. All council members, however, were appointees by the HBC. Consequently, there were no elections and, thus, no elected/responsible government in the Red River Settlement. Until 1834, the Selkirk family, assisted by appointed councillors, administered the government of Assiniboia (as the Red River Colony was variously known). The Governor of Rupert's Land-- an appointee of the Hudson's Bay Company--was the Company's overseer and kept a watchful eye on the activities of the Council of Assiniboia. In 1834, when the Hudson's Bay Company re-acquired ownership of Assiniboia from the Selkirk family, the Company retained the administrative organization of the Council of Assiniboia. Lord Selkirk and later, the Council of Assiniboia, recognized the duality of the French/English languages and the Catholic/Protestant religions in the Red River Settlement. The two school systems developed--simultaneously and side-by-side--and were equally supported by the Hudson's Bay Company and the Council of Assiniboia. This duality of religion, language and education was accepted, recognized and maintained when Manitoba became a province. Cuthbert Grant, who the Northwesters had named "Captain General of all the Half-Breeds" prior to the Battle of Seven Oaks (1816), was given--by the Hudson's Bay Company--the title "Warden of the Plains" and appointed to represent the Metis on the Council of Assiniboia which had been established to govern the Red River country. Coureurs De Bois - After 1670 and the charter--giving all lands drained by rivers flowing into Hudson Bay--granted by King Charles II to "The Governor and Company of Adventurers of England Trading into Hudson's Bay," commonly known as the Hudson's Bay Company, the French were busy seeking solutions to the loss (to the Hudson's Bay Company) of their Indian middlemen in the fur trade. The necessity of replacing these Indian middlemen gave rise to the Canadian coureurs de bois ("runners of the woods") who, in turn, became vital link in the fur trade. The freedom of the Canadian wilds, the sense of adventure, and "work for pay" enticed many a French youth to pursue the fur trade (legally or illegally) in the pays d'en haut (west of Grand Portage and later Fort William at the head of the Great Lakes). The coureurs de bois became the new middlemen. They travelled to the interior, contacted new tribes, explored new regions, traded with the Indians, brought the furs to the trading posts, and, last but certainly not least, fathered many Metis descendants. Crozier, Superintendent - Culotte a la Bavaloise - Hivernant males often wore pants or trousers that opened at the hip. These trousers were called culotte a la Bavaloise or Bavarian breeches. Cumberland House - Cumberland House is the oldest settlement in Saskatchewan. Cumberland House has been occupied continuously since 1774 when the Hudson's Bay Company made the decision to establish its first inland post. A cairn commemorates the founding of the post by Samuel Hearne. The establishment of Cumberland House served to intensify the bitter rivalry between the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company. This rivalry continued unabated until the merger of the two companies in 1821. Located on the delta of the Saskatchewan River, Cumberland House presided over the rich Saskatchewan and Athabasca territories and was for many years an important trading centre and supply depot. Today, Cumberland House is readily accessible by water and air mainly, despite the fact that continued road improvements encourage year-round usage. Remains of the steamer Northcote, used by General Middleton during the Battle of Batoche in 1885, can be seen at Cumberland House. Cut Knife Hill - This promontory draws its name from the Sarsi Chief--Cut Knife--, who met the Crees in a decisive inter-tribal battle during the 1800s. Some years later, on May 1, 1885, a column of 319 soldiers and police left Battleford, at the command of Colonel Otter, to attack Poundmaker's encampment at Cut Knife Hill. Otter's column was supported by two 7-pounder field guns and a Gatling gun. Approaching the Indian bivouac early on the morning of May 2, 1885, Otter's force fought a fierce, seven-hour skirmish with the Cree and their allies before the government troops were beaten back. During the retreat of Otter's column, Poundmaker prevented his excited braves from attacking the withdrawing government troops. Otter's troops counted eight men killed and fourteen wounded. Poundmaker's forces are thought to have lost six men with an additional three wounded. A large quantity of ammunition had to be abandoned by Otter's column as they beat their hasty retreat. |